


White House Wedding, A

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2002-04-10
Updated: 2002-04-10
Packaged: 2019-05-15 12:34:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 31,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14790612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: Preparations for Josh & Donna's Wedding





	1. White House Wedding, A

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**A White House Wedding**

**by:** Christina 

**Disclaimer:** I don’t own the West Wing or any of these characters. They all belong to Aaron Sorkin  & NBC.

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** nothing specific

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Wisdom of Joey Lucas, Coming Up With a Plan, Putting the Plan Into Action, Worth the Wait, A Mother’s Advise,  & Misunderstandings White House Style. A Big thanks to those who always send such great feedback: Mickey, Megan, Michelle, Megs, Laura, Shelley, and Marta. Extra Special Thanks to Lisa for always helping out, Jillian for the read over, & Susan for sharing her personal stories with me that will be reflected in later parts!! 

_Late April: Donna is 4 weeks along Ainsley is 8 weeks along_

**Josh & Donna’s Apartment - Josh’s POV**

You will not believe the week I’ve had. It is quite possibly the strangest week I’ve ever had, but things have finally gotten straightened out. Last night, we found out that Donna is pregnant. I have to say that I’m actually glad for all the confusion of this past week because it gave me time to think and work things out in my head. Before I would have reacted with shock and confusion to such a discovery and would probably have said or done something stupid, but after all my thinking these past few days, I reacted with happiness which I think was much better for Donna. 

The funny thing is that just yesterday, we announced to the President, First Lady, and senior staff that Donna was not pregnant and now we have to reverse that tonight at the engagement dinner the President is hosting for us. 

I stay up long after Donna last night with my hands placed over her stomach. Now I know I won’t be able to feel the baby move yet, but it made me feel closer to it. Beside we all know that Lymans are early learners so my kid is obviously going to move before a regular kid although even I will admit that it won’t be this early. It’s odd, I never really thought I would be this excited about becoming a father, but last night showed me just how excited I am. I just hope this is an easy pregnancy for Donna. I know women don’t like gaining all that weight, and I really hope this morning sickness stops soon. I’m not even going to think about the actual birth part. Let me just say that I am amazed that after a woman goes through childbirth, she willingly lets a man touch her again instead of beating him off with a stick or something. 

Today was Sunday so we didn’t have to go into to work. We slept in late, and then I got out of bed to make us breakfast while Donna was still sleeping. Shocked, aren’t you? Well, let’s just say that making breakfast for a girl was something I learned in college. See then it was you make a girl breakfast, she wants to spend the night again. Let’s just say that I make the best French toast around. Not that I’m worried about Donna wanting to spend the night again or anything, I just thought she’ll appreciate it. Boy was I right. Let’s just say we had a very good morning. 

After breakfast, we decided to go to the grocery store since the inside of our refrigerator was in sad shape. We spent a lot of time in what is usually my least favorite aisle, the produce aisle, because Donna is going to need to eat healthy. According to her, if she has to, it’s a good excuse for me to eat healthy too. We also stocked up on juice which Donna will be drinking in the morning instead of coffee, snack foods, and ice cream which Donna says she’s been craving. On the way home, we stopped at a book store and bought this book, What to Expect When You’re Expecting, which Donna claims all pregnant women buy. I think she might me right because when we got home and she called Ainsley, I discovered that Ainsley bought that book today too. See this is another of those things they don’t teach guys. I could tell that Donna wanted to tell Ainsley that she bought to book to, but she held it in because we decided to tell everyone at once. 

Anyway, Donna spent the afternoon absorbed in her book, sharing interesting facts with me every couple of minutes. I sat on the couch beside her watching a Mets game since the season has gotten underway. Donna decided to plop her feet down in my lap and beg for a foot rub since I wasn’t doing anything with my hands anyway. I ended up giving in. I have a feeling I’ll be doing a lot of that in the coming months. 

Its now 5:00 so we start to get ready to go to the dinner at the White House. Charlie called to inform us that the President wants everyone to dress up for the occasion. Jed Bartlet the only man I know who enjoys getting dressed up in the monkey suit, but having received a Presidential order, I have no choice but to obey. The only good thing about this is Donna fixing my tie. I used to love that, but never told her. It was my a chance to get close to her. I can tie it myself but I much prefer her to do it. Maybe I should tell her that. I walk into the bedroom and see that she is standing in front of the full length mirror that she installed in my bedroom applying her makeup. She has yet to put on her dress because as I have learned, she does that last to avoid getting anything on it. I sit on the bed in front of her and hold out my tie. 

“Joshua, honestly you would think a Fulbright Scholar like yourself would be able to understand how a simple tie works,” she teases as she saunters over to do it for me. She leans over me and wraps the tie around my neck as I breath in her scent. 

“I can,” I say softly. 

“But you’ve had me do it for years, ever since the campaign,” she comments, her face hovering over mine as she works the tie. 

“Well, it was a convenient excuse to be close to you,” I admit. She gives me a satisfied smile. 

“So you like me to put your tie on?” she says in her flirty voice as she sits on my lap to finish up the tie. She never used to do it that way, but I’m not complaining. 

“I like it better when you take it off,” I say with a grin. I grab her wrists and quickly flip her over on the bed with me on top of her. 

“Joshua, you are going to get all wrinkled,” she says though her laughter so I really don’t think she minds. 

“Don’t care,” I tell her with a kiss as she starts to undo the tie she just finished. 

After that little detour on the bed, I my tux did end up very wrinkled and Donna had to reapply her make up. 

“Josh, you’re so wrinkled. They’re all going to know what happened,” she says as we’re walking up the stairs into the Residence. 

“Donna, besides the fact that we’ve been together for a while now, with this announcement we are making tonight, they are pretty much going to know what we’ve been up to. Its not like my wrinkled tux is going to give some big secret away,” I say. 

“Ah, the rare valid point,” she tosses back to me with a smile as we enter the room where everyone else is already gathered. 

“Josh, you’re late for your own engagement party,” the President says. 

“Yes sir we you see there was all this traffic….” I start to say not wanting to explain exactly why we are late as Donna smiles while she watches me squirm. 

“Really? That’s funny because everyone else got here on time and said there was surprisingly little traffic,” the President says with a smile. Donna’s standing there with a big smile on her face that I know would be wiped away in an instant if the question was directed at her. I stand there for a minute looking at their all too amused faces, trying to come up with a believable excuse, but the President begins speaking again. “Relax, Josh. It’s a party for you so your lateness can be forgiven. I’m sure we all understand if you were engaged in more interesting activities,” he says with a smile that let’s me know he knows exactly what those activities were. 

“Come on, let’s get a drink,” the President says as he leads Charlie, Sam, Toby, and I over to the table where the brandy decanter is located while CJ, Donna, Ainsley, Zoey, and the First Lady head over to one of the couches to talk. 

“So how was your day buddy?” I ask Sam. 

“Ainsley made me stop and pick up this book, What to Expect When You’re Expecting, and read the first few chapters to me. Apparently that book is the pregnancy bible,” he says. 

“Yeah, I know,” I say. Oops. 

“How would you know? I thought that was something only girls knew,” Sam says. 

“Yeah, well you know Donna. She talks a lot and sometimes I listen. She must have said that one day,” I say hoping that I don’t sound suspicious. I don’t want to cheat and tell Sam first after Donna refrained from telling Ainsley earlier. Sam just shrugs as we walk back to the girls so I don’t think he thought anything of it. 

**Residence - Donna’s POV**

It served Josh right to get those questions from the President. I told him he was going to know what we’d been doing but Josh choose not to care. I’ll admit I was glad none of those were directed at me, but honestly its not that big of a deal. I mean he knows CJ is good in bed from her comments in the Oval, he knows Sam slept with a call girl, and he even called Ainsley a sex kitten, though admittedly at Sam’s request. It was just Josh’s turn, but it sure was fun to see him stand there and try to think of something plausible to say. He looked just like he did in his one and only press conference, like he’s dug himself into a hole and had no idea how to get out. 

He and Sam are returning from getting a drink to join Ainsley and I on our couch across from the First Lady and CJ. 

“Ainsley, have you made an appointment with a doctor yet?” the First Lady asks. 

“I got one tomorrow evening. My doctor said working in D.C. where people keep crazy hours, she has to do night appointments a couple times a week,” Ainsley says. I need to call to make an appointment too. I’ll have to check Josh’s schedule because I know he’ll want to be there. 

“You’ll probably want to buy a book about it,” Dr. Bartlet suggests. 

“We already did,” Sam assures her. This launches Dr. Bartlet into a discussion of all sorts of things dealing with pregnancy. A while latter, it is announced that dinner is ready so we all sit down at the table to eat. 

Champaign glasses are passed to everyone, but Ainsely. Oh no, I can’t drink that either. Before I can decide what to do with the glass, the President begins his toast. “I’d like to make a toast,” the President says as he stands up. “First, to Josh and Donna. We’ve known you both for a long time, and we’ve known the two of you were meant for each other long before the two of you realized it. Here’s wishing you a life time of love and happiness together. Secondly, Sam and Ainsley, you two are going to have a baby. Nothing changes your life like a baby, but nothing brightens it as much either. Here’s to the parents of the first, and from the way things have been going possibly the only, baby of the Bartlet Administration,” the President says as he lifts his glass. 

Everyone lifts their glasses to drink, but I can’t. Josh gives me a look as if to remind me of this fact although its not like it is something that I would forget. “Donna, why aren’t you drinking? Didn’t you like my toast? Is the champagne bed? ” the President asks. Well, I guess now is the time to tell them. 

“No Sir, I’m sure the champagne is excellent, and I really liked the toast. I think you just might want to change one little part of it,” I say. 

The President raises his eyebrows. “And what part would that be?” he asks. I look at Josh and he takes my hand as he stands up. 

“Well, Sir, the part about Sam and Ainsley’s baby possibly being the only Bartlet administration baby. You see that’s impossible now because we found out last night that Donna’s pregnant too,” Josh says. Silence reigns for a few seconds. Yep, people look just as shocked as I thought they would, well accept for the First Lady who had a pretty good idea that I might be. People are slowly recovering from the shock and are beginning to congratulate us. 

“Congratulations, you two are going to make great parents,” the President tells us. 

Leo comes over and hugs Josh. “Congratulations. I’m happy for you son. Your father would be happy too.” Awe, Leo can be so sweet. 

“So what you had was morning sickness too. Can you believe that we’re going to be pregnant together?” Ainsley asks. Actually, I think that’s pretty great. I’ll have an understanding ear willing to listen when ever I need it. 

“Congratulations you two. Josh, I guess we will play the role of the worried fathers-to-be together,” Sam says. 

The First Lady, Toby, Charlie, and Zoey all offer their congratulations too. CJ however hasn’t moved from the table. 

“CJ? Are you okay?” I ask her. 

“Josh, Donna, in no way do I want to take away from your happiness, and trust me, I’m happy for you too, but this could pause political problems,” CJ tells us. Everyone in the room stops talking and focuses on CJ. 

“CJ, I don’t understand? You didn’t think there would be a problem with Sam and Ainsley having a baby. Why would Josh and I be any different?” I ask. 

“I still don’t think there will be any political problems with Ainsley’s pregnancy, but you and Josh are different. Its an election year. We are facing a very tough Republican in George Baker and we all know how determined Anne Stark is to make him win. They’re not going to attack Sam and Ainsley because Ainsley’s a Republican and they would be attacking their own party. You and Josh are both Democrats and therefore fair game. We haven’t announced your engagement yet. When they get the news of this pregnancy and the wedding all at once, they are going to have a story,” CJ says. That is not going to happen. My baby is not going to be a political issue! Josh and I are about to protest when Leo speaks up. 

“CJ brings up a valid point. We need a strategy to deal with this. Are you two planing on moving up the engagement?” Leo asks us. 

“Yeah, we want to get married in about two months. We were going to start looking for a place tomorrow,” Josh tells them. 

“Well look no further Josh. It will be June in two months, and the Rose Garden will be in bloom. We haven’t had a Rose Garden wedding and I think I’d like to try one,” the President offers. The Rose Garden! I would say that definitely qualifies as a special place. Josh looks at me and I nod before Josh accepts the President’s offer. 

“Okay, tomorrow I want you two to notify any people that you want to tell personally, because we need to make the official announcement the day after to get it out there as soon as possible, before people start finding out about the baby,” Leo says. “Beyond the people here, your immediate family, and Donna’s doctor, no one else will be told about the baby. I’m not saying deny it if asked, I’m saying don’t share it until it becomes necessary. If we’re incredibly lucky, no one will find out about it until after the wedding at which point we can say honestly that the baby did not factor into the decision to get married. The story is less attractive to the press if you’re already married,” Leo says. “I’m sorry that this might become a political issue, but these people don’t play by any set of rules. They just play to win. Everyone here supports you, but we also have to protect the President.” 

“We understand,” I say as I squeeze Josh’s hand. I really hope we are that lucky because I can’t handle the idea of the baby becoming an issue and I think Josh might kill someone if it did. 

**The Doctor’s Office - Josh’s POV**

We’ve had a hectic past few days. There was the engagement dinner two nights ago. Then yesterday, we spent the evening calling close friends and family members that hadn’t been told about the wedding yet to let them know before it was released to the press today. We called Joey Lucas via Kenny since she obviously deserves a big thanks. She was extremely excited and promised to be here for the wedding. I’m surprised that Sam hadn’t told her before we did. I got back at him for all the stories about me he spilled to her by informing her about Ainsley’s pregnancy. 

CJ made the announcement during her morning briefing. The news received a warm reception in the press room and will get likely get positive reviews in the news tomorrow. 

Donna managed to get us an appointment with the doctor today so that is where we are now. We are sitting in the waiting room right now. Donna is reading maternity magazine while I sit here. This woman across from us keeps eyeing us. She looks vaguely familiar, but I just can’t place her. Before I can ponder this further, the nurse calls us back, and I quickly forget the woman in the lobby. 

The doctor runs a test on Donna which comes up positive confirming what we already knew, that Donna is pregnant. Then she asks Donna a series of questions about her cycle and after that says that she can tell us the due date. 

“Your baby is due on January twentieth,” she tells us. 

“Inauguration Day,” I say. 

“Yes Josh, and I swear you had better be by my side instead of the President’s,” Donna warns me. 

“I think the President will completely understand that Donna, and if he doesn’t, the First Lady will make him understand,” I assure her. “Donna, there is no other place I’d be than in the delivery room holding your hand,” I tell her as I place a gentle kiss on her head. 

**The White House - The Next Morning - Josh’s POV**

Donna and I woke up a bit late this morning and had to hurry to get to work on time. As soon as we get to work, I notice people are looking at me strangely. I wonder what’s going on? It can’t be the engagement announcement that I’m sure is in this morning’s papers since most of them already know about it. I’ll have to ask CJ. 

I walk into my office I reach for the highlighted copy of the newspaper that CJ usually puts there. Its not there. In its place is a note. 

“My office. NOW Bring Donna–Leo” 

Shit! This can’t be good. 

“DONNATELLA MOSS!” I holler. 

“You bellowed?” she says with a grin as she sticks her head in my door. 

“Leo needs to see us in his office right away,” I tell her as I place my hand on her back and lead her there. When we get there, I see Leo, Sam, Toby, and CJ gathered around Leo’s desk. None of them look happy. 

“What’s going on?” I ask. 

“Shut the door,” Leo says and I obey. 

“Josh, there’s an article in this morning’s paper,” Leo says. 

“About the engagement?” I ask. 

“Sort of. It’s an op-ed piece,” CJ says. 

“Who wrote it?” I ask. 

“Anne Stark. Now here’s the thing. When you read this, you’re going to want to freak out, and we need you to not do that…..” CJ begins but I cut her off. So this is why there was no newspaper on my desk. Anne Stark wrote something about my engagement. 

“Give it to me,” I order needing to see what she wrote. CJ looks at Leo who nods. This can’t be good. I grab the newspaper from CJ and stare at it. I hear Donna gasp from behind me at the title “Political Shot Gun Wedding” beside a picture of Donna and I. I gulp and then force myself to read the article. My blood is boiling after the first sentence. CJ’s guess that I might freak out is a severe understatement. The article accuses the Bartlet White House of hypocrisy alleging that we promote the teaching of safe sex in high schools but fail to practice it ourselves. In the next line is uses Donna and I as an example saying that our failure to practice what we preach has now resulted in us becoming unwilling parents. OH MY GOD!!! . Unwilling? I am not unwilling and neither is Donna! And we did practice what we preach, it just didn’t work! How the HELL did she find out Donna’s pregnant?? Oh crap! The woman in the office, the one I couldn’t place, she works for Anne Stark. I saw her on the Hill the last time I was there, and yesterday she say Donna reading maternity magazine at the OBGYN’s office. I don’t need to read anymore. I toss the paper to the ground and turn to walk out the door to go ring Anne Stark’s neck. 

Toby, having guessed my course of action, steps in front of the door to block my path. 

“Josh, going over to the Hill and causing a scene won’t help anything,” Toby says. 

“This article is bull shit!” I tell Toby. 

“We all know its bull shit Josh. Now we just have to figure out how to let the rest of the country know its bull shit too,” Toby explains. I take a deep breath and attempt to calm myself, but fail miserably. I turn around and see Donna reading the rest of the paper, her face is drained of all its color. I have never wanted to hurt anyone the way I want to hurt Anne Stark now. I walk over to Donna and put my arm around her. 

“She calls our wedding a modern day shot gun wedding. She says you got me pregnant and now you have to marry me,” Donna manages to get out in a strained voice. As pissed as I am right now, my first concern is Donna. She shouldn’t have to deal with this and especially not in her condition. This kind of stress can’t be good for her pregnancy and I swear if anything happens to our baby because of this, Anne Stark is a dead woman. 

“Donna, honey, sit down,” I say leading her to Leo’s couch. “You know that’s not true. I asked you before we knew about the baby. Anne Stark doesn’t know what she’s talking about,” I tell her. 

“I know that Josh, but the rest of the country doesn’t. I’m going to look like the secretary you knocked up and then had to marry to save your career,” she says. Oh yeah, Anne Stark is definitely going to pay for this. I sit next to Donna and take her hands in mine. 

“Donna, listen to me. You’re not my secretary, you’re my assistant. I’m marrying you because I want to. We’re going to fix this. We’re going to fix this Donna, I promise. We’re going to get the truth out there, I just don’t know how yet. That’s why we’re here Donna. I need you to get it together. We need to get though this and to do that, I need you to help me. I won’t let you or out baby be a political victim, and CJ, Sam, Toby, and Leo won’t let that happen either,” I promise her as I look into her eyes. She squeezes my hands and gives me a small smile and a nod to signify that she is with me. I knew she would be. This might have thrown her for a minute, but my Donna is a fighter. She’ll fight for herself, for us, for our baby, and for the administration. 

“So how do we fix this? CJ has a briefing in an hour and we need to formulate a response,” Leo says and we all set to work making a plan to take on Anne Stark. 

After an hour of planning we have the beginnings of our strategy worked out. We nod at CJ as she leaves for her briefing to put stage one into action. God, I hope this works. I flip on the TV to the White House Closed Circuit Television so we can watch the briefing. 

“Good Morning, if you’ll all take your seats, I have a brief statement that I’ll read and then I’ll open in up for questions,” we hear CJ say. 

I take Donna hand and look at her. “Bring it on,” I hear Donna whisper. See, I told you this woman was strong. She’s up for the fight, and we’re going to win it. 

**The White House Press Room - CJ’s POV**

Just an hour ago, we were shocked with the op-ed piece written by Anne Stark. We’ve only had an hour to prepare for what I am sure will be the main focus of this press briefing. I knew that if she found out about Donna’s pregnancy, that there would be problems and it looks like I was right, only this could be much worse than what I was picturing. 

As soon as I walk into the Press Room, questions are thrown at me. I need to establish some order before I can begin to answer them. Let me also say that Anne Stark will pay for all these head aches she is causing everyone here. I’m just lucky I convinced Josh to stay out of the press room. He origionally wanted to come in here and set everyone straight. What a nightmare that would have been! His first press briefing was a total disaster. Josh holding one when he’s pissed would be even worse. Leo talked some sense into him and he finally agreed that it would be best if I did the briefing. Well no shit! It doesn’t take a Fulbright scholar to figure that one out. I know he wants to protect Donna, but he might make things worse. No, it is my job to protect this administration and all who work for it, and I plan to do just that. 

“Good Morning, if you’ll all take your seats, I have a brief statement that I’ll read and then I’ll open in up for questions,” I say hoping to stop the questions for a minute. 

“CJ, is the White House willing to confirm or deny the allegations that Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman got his assistant pregnant?” Mike, a pushy reported from the New York Times, shouts. 

“I’m sorry Mike, are you having a problem hearing today? I just said that I have a statement to make and then I will be taking questions,” I say. He’s always pushy and today he just stepped over the line. His question can wait just like everyone else’s. “As I’m sure you all know, there was an op-ed piece by Anne Stark published in this morning’s newspaper. Amongst other allegations, it stated that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman got his assistant Donnatella Moss pregnant and is now forced to marry her to salvage his political career. Let me clarify a few things. Neither Josh nor Donna knew that Donna was pregnant when he proposed to her. Now I know you’re not going to want to take my word on this, but I can assure you that its true. Josh proposed to Donna 3 nights ago at the FDR memorial in front of scores of witnesses who overheard the whole thing. They discussed the fact that Donna was not pregnant since there had been some confusion prior to that. Donna stated very clearly that she was not pregnant before Josh proposed. I will be attempting to get a list of witnesses to the incident to have ready for you this afternoon so you can interview them. Josh and Donna found out about the baby 2 nights ago and didn’t reveal it to the press because they didn’t think they needed to. It’s a baby, not a political issue or a story in a news cycle. That being said, I will now take your questions. Katie,” I say. 

“CJ, were Josh and Donna planning to announce the pregnancy at a later day say after the wedding?” Katie asks. 

“No, like I said they didn’t think it should be an issue. They weren’t going to hide it, they just believed that there was no need to officially announce it. Chris,” I say calling on another reporter. 

“CJ, I have a source that says that three home pregnancy tests were charged to Donna Moss’s credit card four days ago. With that information, how can you deny that she knew about the pregnancy at the time of Mr. Lyman’s proposal three days ago?” Chris asks. Luckily I was ready for this question. Sam and Ainsley gave their full permission for me to explain the real reason Donna was buying those tests. 

“The pregnancy tests bought by Miss. Moss four days ago weren’t intended for her use. She bought them for White House Associate Council Ainsley Hayes who used them and then had a subsequent doctor’s appointment confirming that she was pregnant two days ago. I have the records of that appointment here if you would like to see them. Danny,” I say. 

“CJ, are you willing to confirm or deny the statement made in the article that Josh and Donna are “unwilling parents”?” Danny asks. 

“Yes, I am willing to whole heatedly deny the statement. Although this was not a planned pregnancy, Josh and Donna are thrilled with the prospect of becoming parents,” I say knowing that Danny knew what the answer would be and just threw me that question to let me help Josh and Donna as much as I could. “Ron,” I say, calling for the next question. 

“CJ, has the President or Chief of Staff given any thought to firing either Mr. Lyman or Miss. Moss for unprofessional behavior?” Ron asks. 

“Absolutely not. Neither Josh nor Donna have ever conducted themselves in an unprofessional matter. Let me state for the record that when their relationship was announced three months ago, the entire staff, including the President, was supportive and remains to this day supportive of it. They received nothing but good press. These are two people who’s relationship grew over a few years. Now they have found themselves in a situation that happens to people everyday and suddenly they are attacked from all sides. It hardly seems fair to judge them without hearing their side of the story. To rectify that, Josh and Donna will be giving an exclusive interview later this afternoon,” I announce. “Lesley,” I say. 

“CJ, can you tell us if Miss. Moss and Mr. Lyman ever considered an abortion as a means of avoiding political scandal that a pregnancy could cause,” Lesley asks. 

“I can tell you with absolute certainty that an abortion was never considered. As I said before they consider this a normal pregnancy and not a political issue. They had no intention of hiding it via an abortion or other methods. Matt,” I say. 

“CJ, can you tell us what this says about the White House when unmarried staffers who get pregnant are pressured into marriage to avoid scandal?” he asks. 

“Like I said before, no one was pressured into marriage. Josh proposed to Donna one full day before either knew about her pregnancy. The staff was informed the following evening at an engagement dinner in the residence hosted by the President and First Lady,” I say but before I can continue calling on people, Matt announces that he has a follow up. 

“CJ, can you tell us if the White House will be putting pressure on Sam Seaborn and Ainsley Hayes to marry since they find themselves in a similar position?” Matt asks. 

“The White House won’t be putting pressure of any kind on Sam Seaborn or Ainsley Hayes. In fact, Mr. Seaborn received advise from the President who told him to follow his heart rather than simply prescribe to the way things are normal done. Sam and Ainsley have decided to remain unmarried but to raise their baby together. Jonathan,” I say. 

“CJ, can you address the hypocrisy allegation against this White House?” he asks. 

“Well, I’m not sure exactly which allegation of hypocrisy you are referring to, but I’ll assume it is the claim that we argue that safe sex be taught in school and yet fail to practice it. Let me just say that both Ainsley Hayes and Donna Moss were taking Orthotricycline, commonly called the birth control pill, but as we know these are only 97% effective. I have their prescriptions for these fill a few weeks ago if any of you would like to confirm this,” I say, but before I can call on someone else he interrupts me. 

“CJ that wasn’t all I was referring to. Just before this briefing got underway, Christian Right political activist Mary Marsh was quoted as saying that “hypocrisy runs deep in the Bartlet White House. He claims to be a religious man and yet he allow immorality to run freely among his staff.” Will the President answer these claim?” he asks. This is news to me. I hadn’t heard that quote before, but it doesn’t surprise me. That woman has wanted to get back at Josh ever since his comments to her on Capital Beat and this was the perfect opportunity. This is news to me. I hadn’t heard that quote before, but it doesn’t surprise me. That woman has wanted to get back at Josh ever since his comments to her on Capital Beat and this was the perfect opportunity. Before I can answer the question, a voice booms from behind me. 

“YES I will and I’ll do it now,” the voice says as I turn to see a fired up Josiah Bartlet. 

Sequel - "Calm Before The Storm" 


	2. White House Wedding, A 2

**A White House Wedding**

**by:** Christina 

**Disclaimer:** I don’t own the West Wing or any of these characters. They all belong to Aaron Sorkin  & NBC.

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** nothing specific

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Wisdom of Joey Lucas, Coming Up With a Plan, Putting the Plan Into Action, Worth the Wait, A Mother’s Advise,  & Misunderstandings White House Style. A Big thanks to those who always send such great feedback: Mickey, Megan, Michelle, Megs, Laura, Shelley, and Marta. Extra Special Thanks to Lisa for always helping out, Jillian for the read over, & Susan for sharing her personal stories with me that will be reflected in later parts!! 

* * *

**The White House Press Room - CJ’s POV**

Oh my God! The President has just entered the room and he has that look on his face that he gets when he’s in the mood to kick a little ass. 

“Good Morning Mr. President,” I say as he walks up the podium. 

“I see you’ve all been getting a bit out of hand this morning,” the President says to the White House Press Corps. “You know why I chose CJ as my Press Secretary? Well, there are a couple reasons actually. Firstly, she’s so tall and intimidating. Secondly and most importantly though is her sense of honesty. She has not and will not ever lie to you. She might not like the facts, but she tells them as they are. Everything she’s said this morning is one hundred percent accurate. She wouldn’t mislead you or the American people. Don’t ever question this woman’s integrity,” he says with a look in my direction. A smile with pride because of what he’s just said about me. 

“You all think Josh and Donna having a baby is a story? Its certainly not a story that should dominate this briefing. Do you know everything that’s going on here today? Trade talks with China, a meeting with the EPA on new emissions standards, a meeting with the FEC on election reform, a discussion of raising the minimum wage, and a security briefing about the increasing hostilities between India and Pakistan over Kashmir. Those are what the stories should be. That is where the national interest lies, not in that fact that two adults who happen to work in this building have fall in love, made a baby, and are prepared to raise it in a loving, secure home. That’s not a story. If you want a story, go report the number of expectant mothers that are abandoned, the number of abortions that happen everyday, the number of families attempting to adopt a child. Those are real stories, not Sam and Ainsley and not Josh and Donna. These two unborn children will grow up in loving and supportive families, and that is something that should be cherished by others, not destroyed,” he says with a shake of his head. 

“So you don’t think its scandalous, Mr. President?” a reporter named Stuart asks. 

“Do I think its scandalous? No. You want to know what I think is scandalous, that in a country that professes to believe that all men are equal and should be treated as such, that there are those who feel that people whose skin is a different color are less than they. What I think is scandalous is that there are people in this country that are professing to love this country, but clearly can't stand Americans. What I think is scandalous is that there are thousands of people living in poverty, addicted to drugs, and committing crimes and yet you all believe the story, the scandal is two people who’ve fallen in love and had the audacity to not follow the schedule dictated by social norms. What I think is scandalous is people who profess to want to know the truth can't believe it when it's staring them in the face. What I think is scandalous Stuart the spiteful treatment the members of my staff have receive at the hands of the media this morning. Well, that stops right now. As of this moment, by my executive order, no reporter has the right to question the personal lives of any of my staff in my press room, from those that work in the Mail room right up to the Oval Office. They are private citizens who deserve private lives. Any White House reporter who intrudes upon these lives will have their White House Credentials revoked immediately. As long as their behavior is legal, its nobody’s business but theirs. That’s all,” the President says as he turns to exit the room. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Press Room this quiet. 

“Well if there are no more questions, then this concludes the morning briefing. I’ll see you all again in a few hours. Danny, I want to see you in my office in an hour,” I say as I follow the President out of the Press Room toward the Oval Office. 

When I get there, he is surrounded by Josh, Donna, Sam, Ainsley, and Leo who are congratulating him on and thanking him for his great performance in there. 

“And that Josh, is how you handle the press,” I hear the President say. 

“I’ll take note of that Sir, although I think you being President might have something to do with it,” Josh responds. 

“Nice Job Mr. President,” I say as I move into the room. 

“CJ, you did a wonderful job of holding them off until I got there,” he says. 

“Thank you Sir,” I say. “Unlike Josh, you are welcome to visit the press room as often as you like.” 

“So what do we do now?” Leo asks knowing that as much as we wish it were, this press conference isn’t going to be the end of things. Before we can start discussing it, Toby rushing into the room holding a paper above his head. 

“I’ve got it! Just read this,” he says as he throws the paper down on the desk with a look of triumph. Oh my God! This is great! 

* * *

**The Oval Office - Donna’s POV**

I still can’t believe all this is happening. Anne Stark is trying to turn my baby into a political pawn and I won’t stand for it. As much as I would like to rant and rave like Josh did in his office while watching CJ’s briefing because the reporters questions were pissing him off, I know I have to be the calm one. Sam and I actually had to physically stop Josh from marching into the press room and biting that reporter’s head off that asked if we considered an abortion. Not that I wasn’t ever bit as pissed as he was, I just knew that we had to find a better way to deal with it. 

See, Josh is in protective mode. He’ll do what ever it takes to protect me and protect our baby. The problem is, protective Josh is not always the most sensible Josh. He once threatened to sick the IRS on Dr. Freeride as punishment for all the pain he caused me. While I appreciate the thought, this would not be a wise career move for Josh to make. Josh marching into the press room and threatening a reporter on live TV would have even worse consequences. 

Sam and I made Josh see the point while Leo stood by the door to make sure he didn’t bolt. The remainder of the time CJ was at the podium, Josh paced back and forth, yelling at the TV as if the reporters on it could actually hear him. When the President took the podium, Josh managed to calm down especially after no reported dared to ask another question when he left. By the time we got to the Oval Office, Josh was relatively calm and back in strategy mode. 

After thanking the President for everything he said, we were all standing around, trying to decide on our next move when Toby came rushing into the Oval Office. See, Toby was not in Josh’s office with the rest of us. He excused himself saying he had something he needed to see to. Apparently, it was finding this paper he just threw down on the desk in triumph. 

All of us crowd around the paper and begin reading. Toby was right, this really is going to help us. What we’re reading is a paper about why the personal lives of politicians, provided all their behavior is legal, shouldn’t be exploited by the news media for profit or other politicians for political gain. The names at the top of the paper read Anne Stark and Toby Ziegler. 

“Toby, what is this?” CJ asks. 

“Anne Stark and I went to college together. We had a class called Media and Politics during which we wrote this paper together. I keep all my papers on disk so I just pulled this one up,” Toby explains. 

“Toby, on this one, you are definitely da man!” Josh says as he grabs the paper and holds it above his head. “Hypocritical Bartlet administration my ass! Anne Stark is going to be eating her words in a couple hours!” Josh says with excitement. 

“There’s more. I don’t have this on file, but Anne wrote an op-ed piece published in the Washington Post two years ago when Republican Congressman Myers was taking a lot of heat when his affair was discovered. It bashes the Democratic Party for intruding into people’s bedrooms and making stories out of their personal lives. Bonnie and Ginger are locating it right now,” Toby says. 

In his exuberance, Josh appears to be doing a bit of a victory lap around the Oval Office although as he just said, this victory belongs to Toby because by tomorrow, Anne is going to be known around the beltway as the Queen of Hypocrisy. Before he can finish his lap, the door to the Oval opens and Charlie walks in. 

“I’m sorry to disturb you but this was just send over from Anne Stark’s office and its marked urgent. Its for Josh,” Charlie says handing Josh a brown box. 

The President nods to Josh to open the box. Josh reaches his hand into the box and pulls out one of those pre-made baby baskets willed with a couple baby bottles, toys, and a blanket. Josh rips the letter off the top and reads it out loud. 

> __  
> Josh,  
>  I thought I should send you a present after the one you and Donna have just given me. It’s really the least I could do because just think, when you’re taking your baby home, I’ll be helping my boss move into his new home. Maybe you know it? 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.  
> Anne Stark

Oh my God! That woman is evil. Josh rips the small stuffed elephant that she had added to the basket and hurls it at the wall. Josh storms over to the phone presumably to call Anne and give her a piece of his mind, but Toby steps in front of him.

“Josh, let me handle this,” Toby says, placing his hand on the phone. 

“Toby, that woman is insulting me and my family and I won’t stand for it. I’m not going to hide behind you! She needs to hear this from me,” Josh says. Someone needs to calm him down. 

“Josh, she’ll just bait you for a quote like she did to me with the Leadership Breakfast. You’ll get pissed and give her just what she wants, a quote that will offend Republicans and not sit well with Independents. You’re a brilliant politician, but when you get pissed, you say stupid ass things that you end up regreting later even if they were right. Your appearance with Mary Marsh on Capital Beat ringing an bells here?” Toby asks, forcing Josh to understand why he’s doing this. He’s protecting Josh the way Josh protects Leo. 

“What are we going to do?” CJ asks. 

“We’re going to use her own tricks on her. I’ll bait her for the quote this time,” Toby explains. “I’ll use the speaker phone, CJ you’ll listen and leak the quote to a reporter before the afternoon briefing. Josh, if you want to stay, you need to sit and keep that mouth of yours closed. Anne can’t know that anyone other than me is in the room.” 

“I’ll be quiet. Just get the quote,” Josh says as he sits on the couch and takes my hand. I give him a small smile because I know how hard this is for him. He wants nothing more than to go kick Anne Stark’s ass but he knows he can’t do that. 

“Josh, do you want to stand with your back to the wall to help relax you?” I ask trying to get a smile out of him. I am rewarded with a small smile and a shake of his head. “Should I ask the secret service to bring some duck tape to ensure that you keep your mouth shut?” I ask. 

“I’ll be good. I promise,” he says. 

“Okay, but just remember, the second your mouth opens, my hands are going over it to keep you quiet until the duck tape gets here,” I say. 

The President has just ordered that we not be disturbed for any reason. All of us sit to listen to the phone call except of CJ who hovers near Toby with a note pad. 

Toby dials the number and waits until Anne’s assistant picks up. 

“Hi, this is Toby Ziegler, the White House Communications Director calling to speak with Anne Stark,” he says calmly. 

“She’s rather busy today. Is she expecting your call?” the woman asks. 

“No, but I think she’ll take it,” Toby says. 

“Alright, hold on a minute. I’ll see if she can take the call,” the woman says and so we all wait hoping that Anne will take Toby’s call. 

“Toby, did you enjoy my article today?” Anne asks when she picks up the phone. 

“I’m sure you know how I feel about it,” Toby says calmly. 

“Toby, why are you calling me? Shouldn’t you be frantically running around trying to come up with a way to deal with this?” Anne asks. 

“Well, President Bartlet’s impromptu visit to the press room gave us a bit of a reprieve so I have a minute to talk to you,” Toby says. 

“I’ll admit his speech was good and he may have bought you some time but this issue isn’t going to go away,” Anne warns. 

“Why’d you do it, Anne?” Toby asks. 

“Do what? Write the opinion piece? I’ve written dozens of them. You’ve written dozens of them. Its what we do,” Anne says. She’s not playing into Toby’s hands yet. She hasn’t given us anything we can use. 

“Yeah, we’ve even written a couple together if I recall,” Toby says. 

“Yeah, in college. So why the hell are you questioning me about this one now?” Anne asks. Good, she’s starting to get irritated. 

“I didn’t mean why did you write a piece. I mean, why did you write one you don’t believe,” Toby explains. 

“What are you talking about? Of course I believe Josh got Donna pregnant. Hell, you guys admitted it,” Anne says, not catching Toby’s point. 

“I wasn’t referring to that. Donna is pregnant and contrary to what you wrote they are both very happy about it,” Toby says as Josh puts his hand on my stomach as if to confirm what Toby said. 

“Well good for Josh and Donna. I’m glad they’re happy because they’ve certainly caused a lot of headaches for everyone else,” Anne says. Josh tenses up but keeps his mouth closed like he promised. 

“Do you remember all those nights in college when we would go out and debate politics. We didn’t agree on much, but there was one thing we always agreed on, that personal lives should be separate from political lives. Hell, we believed in it so much, we wrote a paper on it together,” Toby says. 

“Toby that was a long time ago. Things change,” Anne says. 

“Yeah some things change. Foreign policy changes, but things like this don’t change,” Toby says bluntly. 

“Toby, we were so young and naïve then. We thought of this world as being this idealist place. We didn’t know the first thing about how the political world operates,” Anne says. 

“We knew how it should work,” Toby comments dryly. 

“Yeah we did, and in a perfect world, that’s how they would work. People would leave each other’s personal lives alone, but I’ve come to realize that this isn’t a perfect world. You play by the rules that are in place, not the rules you think should be in place,” Anne says. There’s quote number one! 

“No, you fight for the rules that should be in place. You fight for what’s right and you fight for what you believe in,” Toby argues. 

“Yeah, and when you do that, you lose the election. I know, I’ve been there, and I got tired of it. In politics, you play to win. If that means bending your personal beliefs, well so be it. I’m here to play,” Anne says. CJ is scribbling at her notepad again. 

“I’ve been there too. You don’t even want to know how many elections I’ve lost, but you don’t bend your beliefs to fit the game. You look for the real thing, the candidate you believe in and you fight without losing your self respect. I found that in Josiah Bartlet. Maybe you just haven’t found that yet,” Toby suggests. 

“I do n’t like what you’re insinuating. David Reynolds is a great candidate who has a great chance to win the presidency,” Anne says. 

“Is he the real thing?” Toby asks. 

“He’s the real thing that I’m looking for,” Anne says. 

“Well, then I feel sorry for you,” Toby comments. “Because at the end of the day, if we lose the election, I still have my self respect.” 

“I don’t need your pity. What I do need, however, is to get off the phone so I can prepare for the press conference we have scheduled for this afternoon,” Anne says. 

“Well, don’t let me keep you,” Toby says. 

“Good luck with the afternoon press briefing. You guys are going to need all the help you can get,” Anne says just before hanging up. As soon as he hangs up the phone, the room erupts in cheers. 

“Toby, you are da man!” Sam and Josh say together. 

“Brilliant work Tobias,” CJ says. 

“That was some of the best strategy I’ve seen in a long time,” Leo says with a smile as the President pats Toby on the back. I can’t even think of the words to say, so I hug him and give him a kiss on the cheek which makes him a bit flustered since he’s not used to those kind of displays. 

“By the end of the day, Anne Stark is going to be the new synonym for hypocrite. I’ll get to work leaking those quotes. This time its going to be Anne who’s blindsided,” CJ says. 

“Very nice work Toby,” the President says. 

“Yeah, and I didn’t sacrifice any of my principles to do it. She dug her own grave by going against what she believes in,” Toby says. 

“Let’s finish this,” Josh says. I can’t wait for the afternoon briefing. Ours is scheduled to end just 10 minutes before Anne’s begins so she’s going to know how we felt scrambling to get ready this morning. Good, she should be exposed for the self serving, slimy hypocrite she is! 

* * *

**CJ’s Office - CJ’s POV**

I’m at my desk prepping for my next briefing which I have a feeling I am going to enjoy much more than my morning briefing when there is a knock at my door and Danny sticks his head around. 

“Come on in and shut the door,” I say. He complies and then takes a seat in my visitor’s chair. 

“You said you wanted to see me,” he says. 

“Yeah, first of all, thanks for your question in there,” I say. 

“Yeah well, I figured you deserved a chance to defend Josh and Donna. They shouldn’t have to go through this,” Danny says. 

“Well, because of that, I’m choosing you to do Josh and Donna’s exclusive interview,” CJ says. 

“CJ, I’d be more than happy to do it, but can I make a suggestion. You’ve got something planned for this next briefing, I can see it in your eyes. You’re going to strike back at Anne and I’m pretty sure that what you’ve got is good. Don’t have me do the interview today. Let this news cycle be the story on Anne tha you’ve got. Let’s wait so when we do the interview, its not tainted by talk of scandal. Do it closer to the wedding,” Danny suggests. 

“Alright. It’s your interview. Pick the date and I’ll set it up. I do have a tip for you for the next briefing,” I say. 

“What?” Danny asks with curiosity. 

“Check your newspaper archives for op-ed by Anne Stark about 2 years ago,” I say. He gives me a nod and then gets up and leaves to hunt for the op-ed. 

“Carol! Get Ainsley in here,” I say. Ten minutes later, my door opens and Ainsley walks though. 

“You wanted to see me,” Ainsley says. 

“Yeah, I’ve got a job for you,” I tell him. 

“What do you need me to do?” she asks. 

“I want you to have lunch with your friend Andrew, the White House Correspondent from Fox News. It’s the conservative one and I want this story to come from them. Here’s a transcript of a phone call Toby just had with Anne Stark. Drop the quotes I highlighted during lunch. He’s in his cubical right now. I already sent a note over that you’d be meeting him,” I explain, handing her the paper. 

“This is good,” Ainsley says as she reads over the paper. 

“Yeah, now go do it. Make sure I get the question in my next briefing,” I say and she nods as she exits. 

* * *

**CJ’s Afternoon Press Briefing - CJ’s POV**

I walk into the press room, and they are calmer than they were this morning. The allow me to make all my announcements without interrupting me with questions. When I’ve finished with my announcements, I announce that I will now be taking questions and immediately most of them begin calling my name. 

“Danny,” I say, knowing I want his question first. 

“CJ, I have an article here that was printed in the Washington Post two years ago. Its written by Anne Stark and basically attacks the Democratic Party for making a story about Congressman Myers’ personal life when his affair was discovered. Would the White House like to comment on it in light of the fact that Ms. Stark is now attempting to make a story out of Josh and Donna’s personal life?” Danny asks. 

“Yes we would. Obviously when it hurts her party, she’s rather avoid the story, but if there is a political gain to be had, she’s completely in favor of making a story out of someone’s personal life. Andrew,” I say, hoping Ainsley did her work well. 

“CJ, I have a source which is quoting Anne Stark as saying earlier today “In a perfect world, that’s how things would work. People would leave each other’s personal lives alone, but I’ve come to realize that this isn’t a perfect world. You play by the rules that are in place, not the rules you think should be in place” and also “In politics, you play to win. If that means bending your personal beliefs, well so be it. I’m here to play.” Would you care to comment on this?” he asks. 

“Yes, I would. Anne Stark was right, she’s here to play. She plays the game the way its normally played, doing whatever it takes to win even if it means going against her personal beliefs. If you’d like to see what her personal beliefs are, I would suggest you look into her college papers. In fact I have one here for you that Carol is distributing. It’s a paper she wrote in collaboration with Toby Ziegler arguing against making a story out of the personal lives of politicians. Miss. Stark has accused the White House of hypocrisy but I think this makes clear who the hypocrite really is. The White House sticks to our principles. We don’t hide from what we believe. Anne Stark doesn’t stick to her principles,” I say. After that, I answer a series of questions all of which paint Anne Stark in a bad light. Finally I see that it is time to end the briefing so I can watch Anne’s briefing on the Hill. “I’m sorry, I’d love to stick around, but I have a meeting. I’ll see you all tomorrow,” I say, exiting the stage. 

* * *

**The Hill - Anne Stark’s POV**

Oh my God! I still completely still as I watch CJ’s briefing before going to mine. I was grinning in anticipation of her being attacked again when I was blindsided! It started with that Danny bringing up my op-ed from a couple years ago. I was hoping that would slide by under the radar in face of this new sex scandal, but it didn’t. Its okay, I can spin that one op-ed. Then Andrew asks his question. Oh Shit! He’s repeating my words! My glass drops to the floor and shatters as I remain glued to the TV. I start shaking as I realize what Toby did. Before I can move again, my secretary enters the room. 

“Miss. Stark, Toby Ziegler is on the phone again,” she says. I wordlessly reach for the phone. 

“You asshole! You took advantage of a conversation between old friends,” I accuse him. 

“Just like you did last year. I was borrowing a page out of your book. Did you like our re-election announcement,” he says. 

“Why are you calling me?” I demand. 

“I just wanted to say good luck with your afternoon briefing. You’re going to need all the help you can get,” he says throwing more of my words back at me. I hurl the phone at the wall. I want to cry, but I can’t. I’ve been screwed and I know it. I may have lost the opening battle, but I’m not ready to offer my surrender yet. I straighten up and scramble to prepare for my briefing as best I can. I can’t win this one, but give me time to think up a new plan, and I guarantee I’ll win the next battle. I’ll be putting Reynolds in the White House in a few short months. 

* * *

**CJ’s Office - CJ’s POV**

I head back to my office where Sam, Ainsley, Josh, Donna, and Toby are gathered. Together we watch Anne fumble through her briefing, trying her best to defend herself but failing spectacularly. 

“Miss. Stark, do you have a response to the White House briefing?” a reporter asks Anne. 

“Yes, the college paper was written nearly two decades ago. Are we really to be held responsible for what we in out innocence thought in college?” Anne asks. 

“Yes, when it’s a matter of ethics!” Josh yells at the TV. 

“Josh, you do realize that they can’t hear you, right?” Donna teases. 

“What about the op-ed piece two years ago?” another reporter asks Anne. 

“That was different. There wasn’t a baby involved,” Anne says. 

“Well, no one was pregnant, but the Congressman did have a toddler at home, correct?” the reporter asks Anne. From there Anne’s briefing goes to hell. It actually makes my morning briefing look like a walk in the park. After a few more minutes, Anne ends the briefing. 

I smile with satisfaction because I know that Anne Stark, not Josh and Donna, is going to be the front page story of tomorrow’s Washington Post. Donna looks like a huge weight has been lifted from her shoulders and Josh has lost the murderous look he’d been wearing for a good portion of the day. I know this isn’t over, Anne will fight back later with something else, but the opening battle went to us. Leo enters the room and offers his congratulations. 

“Well, its been a long day, but we did good. Josh, take Donna home. She could use a little relaxation after the day she had. Sam, get Ainsley some food, I’m sure she’s going to want it,” Leo says. We all agree. Sam and Josh take Donna and Ainsley home while Toby and I go out for a drink. 

* * *

**Josh & Donna’s Apartment - Donna’s POV **

Josh and I stopped for dinner at a quiet seafood restaurant. I wanted sushi, but Josh refused to allow that thinking that raw food couldn’t possibly be good for the baby so we compromised on cooked sea food. I think it also may have had something to do with Josh’s belief that sushi is the grossest food on the planet, but coming from the man who eats burnt burgers, what do you expect. We stopped on the way home and picked up ice cream and curled up on the bed eating it. 

“I was so proud of you today. You were so strong,” Josh tells me with a kiss. 

“I was proud of you too. You actually managed to control your mouth,” I say with a smile. 

“And you know how hard that is for me,” he says. 

“Yes, I do, but you were very good,” I respond. 

“I think I should be rewarded,” he says, lifting his eye brows. 

“What did you have in mind?” I ask with a grin, knowing exactly what he’s thinking. 

“Well, my mouth had been abnormally idle today…..” he says. 

“And….” I say. 

“Well, you wouldn’t want to deprive my mouth of its daily exercise, would you?” he asks. 

“Well, we wouldn’t want your mouth muscles to wither away, would we?” I tease keeping my lips just out of his range. 

“No, we wouldn’t. I mean, what would the country do without my amazing mouth. You don’t want to be the cause of that, do you? My fan club might come after you…” he starts but I cut him off. 

“You still have your fan club?” I say with a fake pout. 

“Yeah, but you’re the President and the only member I care about,” Josh says trying to save himself. 

“Josh, shut up and kiss me already,” I say, grabbing his face and pulling it toward mine. 

* * *

**Sam & Ainsley’s Apartment: - Sam’s POV **

Ainsley and I went to dinner and then came back to our place for the evening. We sat and talked for a while before she excused herself to go into the office we share, shutting the door behind her. She’s been in there for an hour, but hasn’t told me what she’s doing. This kind of behavior would drive Josh nuts, and while I admit I wonder what’s going on, I’ll wait until she decides to tell me. 

“Ainsley, honey, are you coming to bed?” I ask through the door. 

“I’ll be there in a minute. I just need to finish this up,” she calls through the door as I hear the keys on her computer clicking. 


	3. White House Wedding, A 3

**A White House Wedding**

**by:** Christina 

**Disclaimer:** I don’t own the West Wing or any of these characters. They all belong to Aaron Sorkin  & NBC.

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** nothing specific

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Wisdom of Joey Lucas, Coming Up With a Plan, Putting the Plan Into Action, Worth the Wait, A Mother’s Advise,  & Misunderstandings White House Style. A Big thanks to those who always send such great feedback: Mickey, Megan, Michelle, Megs, Laura, Shelley, and Marta. Extra Special Thanks to Lisa for always helping out, Jillian for the read over, & Susan for sharing her personal stories with me that will be reflected in later parts!! 

* * *

**Josh and Donna’s Apartment - Donna’s POV**

I wake up and without opening my eyes, reach out for Josh. I stretch my arm but fail to make contact with his body. I gingerly open my eyes and scan the room but I don’t see him. “Josh!” I call, but no one answers. I climb out of bed to check the bathroom, but he’s not there either. I walk back into the bedroom and spot a piece of paper on my nightstand. I pick it up and scan it. 

>   
> __  
> Donna,  
>  Sorry to leave, but I had to do something before work. Don’t forget to eat breakfast! I’ll see you at  
> the office. I love you.  
> Josh

I wonder what he had to do. After showering and dressing, I head to the kitchen and have a bowl of cereal and fruit because if I don’t have breakfast, Josh won’t shut up about it.

When I arrive at work and get to my desk, I see a basket with a big bow on it. It is filled with 4 different bridal magazines, a wedding planner notebook, and a travel book on Hawaii. Attached to the basket is another note from Josh. 

>   
> __  
> Donna,  
>  I thought I was about time to start planning the wedding since we have less than two months.  
>  Hope these help. I love you.  
> Josh.

I smile at the gift and walk into his office to find him sitting at his desk reading a memo on campaign finance reform.

“I missed you this morning, but since you had a good excuse, you’re forgiven,” I say with a smile. 

“Good. Did you eat breakfast?” he asks as he greets me with a quick kiss. 

“What are you? The food police?” I ask. 

“For the next eight months, yes. Did you eat?” he asks again. This is going to get old fast. 

“Yes, I had fruit and cereal,” I assure him. 

“Good. Wouldn’t want the baby to go hungry,” he responds. 

“Josh, the baby is the size of a grain of rice. I doubt it eats that much,” I say. Before he can respond, CJ bursts into Josh’s office holding a copy of the Washington Post and wearing a huge smile. 

“Did you see this?” she asks. 

“Not yet,” Josh replies as I shake my head. 

“Read it,” CJ commands, setting the paper in front of us. I glance at the circled article. 

Its called Attack the Issues, Not the People. It is a very well written op-ed piece about how no one should attack other people’s personal lives for political gain, instead you should attempt to gain ground by attacking the issues. It says that for every scandal in one party there is another in the other party. That all people have triumphs and failures and that we need to understand that no one is perfect, especially in politics. There are good people and bad people in both parties and I can assure you that the Bartlet administration is filled with good people. They are honest people who believe in what they are doing regardless of whether you agree with their politics or not. Sex scandals happen in every party, but this is not a scandal. This is just two people who happened to fall in love and ended up with a baby. It happens to people everyday, and if you’re so partisan that you don’t believe this happens to unmarried Republicans, let me just say that it has happened to me. We shouldn’t attack people for being people. That’s not what politics should be about. You attack the issues not the people! It is signed Ainsley Hayes, card carrying member of the Republican Party and Associate White House Council for the Bartlet Administration. 

“Danny says the Post has been flooded with calls from people agreeing with this piece, most of whom are Republicans. This isn’t going to cost us any ground and your baby won’t be a story anymore,” CJ says in an excited voice as Josh hugs me. 

The phone rings so I reach for it. 

“Josh Lyman’s office,” I say and then pause to listen. “We’ll be right over,” I say hanging up the phone. “That was Charlie. The President wants all of us in the Oval Office right away,” I say, and so we head over there. When we get there, Toby, Leo, and Sam are already there reading over Ainsley’s article. 

“I just sent for Ainsley. She should be here soon. Sam, why didn’t you give us a heads up that she was writing this?” the President asks. 

“I didn’t know. She locked herself in the office last night and didn’t tell me what she was doing,” Sam confesses. See, if I did that, Josh might threaten to knock down the door to find out what was going on. 

“Mr. President, Ainsley is here,” Charlie says. 

“You wanted to see me, Mr. President,” she says as she walks in. 

* * *

**Anisley’s POV**

“Yes, come in. I wanted to thank you for this article you wrote. Danny tells CJ it is getting a warm reception from republicans,” the President says. 

“I was just writing what I believe, Mr. President,” I tell him truthfully. “I’m thrilled it helped you. I’ve never liked Anne Stark. I wanted to show Republicans that she doesn’t speak for all of us.” 

“Well, you did a wonderful job,” the President tells me with a smile. After that, everyone in the room is congratulating me and thanking me. CJ is thrilled that this will make her day in the press room easier. 

“Well, I hate to break this up, but we’ve got a country to run,” the President says a few minutes later. Donna, CJ, and I agree to meet for lunch in a couple hours to begin planning Donna’s wedding. 

Sam walks me back down to my office thanking me for what I did for Josh and Donna. 

“Sam, they’re my friends too. I didn’t want to see them unjustly hurt by this,” I tell him. 

He smiles and kisses me. “I really do love you, you know that.” 

“Yeah, I do,” I say with a smile as I return the kiss. “Now, I’ve got work to do. I’ll see you tonight,” I say with a smile a minute later. 

“Yeah, have fun at lunch. Eat healthy,” Sam advises. He and Josh already have this whole protective father thing down. 

I spend the next two hours going over a stack of briefs from Congressional hearings until Leo walks in. 

“Leo,” I say standing up. 

“Sit,” he says as he takes a seat across from me. “You did good today, kid,” he tells me with a smile. That’s high praise coming from Leo. 

“Thank you,” I say with a smile. 

“I know you were apprehensive about coming to work here, but things have turned out great. You’ve been a real asset to us. You’ve put aside partisanship to work toward something you believe in. That’s commendable. The President once gave me something as a gift for believing in him, the framed Bartlet for America napkin in my office. Now I want to give something to you. You gave up the opportunity to become a star in your party to come work for a group of Democrats you disagreed with for less money, and now here you are helping fight for us,” Leo says as he pulls a frame from behind his back. In it is my article. Across the bottom is a small plate engraved with the words ‘To my favorite Republican. Thanks for a job well done. Leo McGarry.’ “I thought it might look nice in your office, and as the President told me, that was awful nice of you,” he says as he hands me the frame. I think I might cry. I stand up and hug Leo. He really is a great guy. He was the one person who always made me feel welcome from my first minute in the White House. 

“Alright, well don’t cry. I never did know what to do with a crying woman,” Leo says so I give him a big smile instead. 

“Thank you Leo. This really means a lot to me,” I tell him. 

“Well, you earned it and you’re very welcome,” he says before leaving. I hang the frame on my wall before going to meet CJ and Donna for lunch. 

The three of us meet in CJ’s office to decide where to go. 

“I want Mexican,” I say since I’ve been craving it all morning. 

“Ooh that sounds good,” Donna agrees. She had already said that she’ll go where ever we pick so it looks like Mexican. We had out of the White House to the closest Mexican food restaurant. 

* * *

**Donna’s POV**

Mmm. This burrito is great! I made sure to get extra spicy salsa which I normally don’t do, but I think the baby likes spicy food. 

“Okay, we have less than 2 months to plan this wedding. Let’s get started,” CJ says. “We’ve already got the location. We’ll send the men this weekend to get fitted for tuxes. We can also start shopping for your dress this weekend,” CJ says. 

“We need to do the invitations as soon as humanly possible,” I say. 

“Good point. You and Josh come up with a guest list tonight and I’ll call someone to have a bunch of sample invitations sent over for you to look at,” CJ says. 

“We need bridesmaids dresses. You two will be my co-maids of honor and I was going to ask Margaret to be a bridesmaid so we’ll need three dresses,” I say. 

“What color were you thinking?” Ainsley asks. 

“I don’t know, but I don’t want the usual, hideous bridesmaids dresses. I want them to be beautiful,” I say. I can’t stand the dresses that some brides pick. “I’ve been looking through some magazines that Josh bought me and I found a few that I like,” I say as I pull out the magazines and flip to the pages that I have marked to show them. “This one is my favorite,” I say, pointing to a royal blue gown with tiny straps. It is a clingy dress with a low back. It’s a dress that I would actually love to wear somewhere rather than stash in a closet and hope I never see it again. 

“It’s beautiful,” Ainsley says. 

“I love it. You should go with that one Donna,” CJ tells me. 

“What are you going to do for flowers?” Ainsley asks. 

“I was thinking of having each of you carry a bouquet of white roses,” I say. 

“Sounds good. We can call the florist this afternoon and put the order in. What about a cake? The President told me to offer you the White House pastry chef,” CJ says. 

“That sounds good. One less thing to worry about. Can you guys come shopping with me on Sunday for a dress?” I ask and they both immediately say they can. 

“What about the honeymoon? Have you made arrangements yet?” Ainsley asks. 

“All I know is that we’re going to Hawaii. Josh gave me a guidebook to pick out some things to do while we’re there, but he said he’s making all the arrangements. I don’t even know where we’re staying,” I tell them. 

“You’re actually leaving some of the planning to Josh?” CJ asks in amazement. 

“Yeah, but I threatened him so he knows he better not mess it up. Besides, he has Sam helping him I’m sure,” I say. 

“Because two idiots planning it is better than one,” CJ says causing all of us to crack up. We finish our preliminary planning and agree to meet on Sunday for breakfast and then a full day of dress shopping and wedding planning. 

* * *

_3 Days Before the Wedding (Ainsley is 4 months along, Donna is 3 months along)_

**Josh & Donna’s Interview with Danny - Josh’s POV**

My life has been crazy for the past two months. I spend my days doing the country’s business, my evenings trying to help Donna plan our wedding, and my nights I usually have to give her a back rub and/or a foot rub or going to get food to satisfy her cravings. Today, we have to do an interview with Danny. Donna is a little nervous, but not too bad. I leave her with CJ to do some final prepping and walk to see Danny. 

“Danny,” I say tapping his shoulder so he’ll turn around. 

“Yeah Josh,” he says. 

“Just go easy on Donna, okay. She’s been emotional lately,” I tell him. 

“No problem,” he agrees. A minute later, it is announce that we need to take our seats. I give Donna a quick kiss on the cheek so as not to mess up her lipstick for the camera before we start. 

“Good evening. I’m here tonight with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman and his assistant Donna Moss who also happens to be his fiancé. First off, your wedding is tomorrow, and I would like to offer my congratulations,” Danny says and Donna and I both thank him. 

“Many of you watching don’t know Josh and Donna the way I and others in the press room do. When we heard they finally got together, the universal response was ‘it’s about time,’ but lets start at the beginning so you can get to know them a little too,” Danny says. 

“Well, she basically hired herself back during the Bartlet for American campaign,” I say with a smile. 

“What he means is, I walked in, noticed his was the messiest office and set about to organize it,” Donna says. 

“And she’s been organizing my life ever since,” I say. 

“But you didn’t start dating then,” Danny says. 

“No. Josh was dating Mandy Hampton back then. We started as friends,” Donna explains. Dating Mandy, what the hell was I thinking?? 

“And over the years, the friendship grew. Then a couple years ago, Josh was shot in Rosslyn. Was that when things started to change for you two?” Danny asks. 

“Yeah, that was when I first knew. Toby told me he was shot and I knew that if he died, a part of me would too,” Donna says. 

“And you Josh?” Danny asks. 

“Well, when I woke up, hers was the first face I wanted to see, but I was too stupid at the time to understand what that meant,” I confess. I really should have figured it out then, but sadly I didn’t. 

“When did you figure things out?” Danny asks me. 

“Well, she took care of me after the shooting and I started having feelings that I couldn’t figure out. I did discover that I hated it when she dated anyone. I started to figure out my feelings after the State of the Union last year when a pollster named Joey Lucas tried filled me in,” I say. 

“But that was almost a year and a half ago. You didn’t start dating until five months ago. What took you so long?” Danny asks. 

“You don’t seem to realize how thick Josh’s skull is. It took him a while to process Joey’s message,” Donna says. 

“Hey now! You could have said something during that time, but instead you waited for me to make the first move so don’t be complaining about the wait,” I point out. 

“I’m not complaining, I’m just telling it like it is,” Donna says with a smile. 

“Is she right, Josh?” Danny asks. 

“Yes,” I say reluctantly. I hate to admit it, but Donna is usually right. “This past January, Joey decided to be more explicit and knock some sense into me. It worked that time. Donna and I got together less than two weeks later.” 

“What he neglects to mention is that he actually didn’t say it first. He waited for me to say it,” Donna says. 

“Yeah, well you knew how I felt,” I say, trying to defend myself. 

“Yeah, I did,” she agrees, squeezing my hand. 

“So you started dating five months ago,” Danny says. 

“And have been very happy ever since,” Josh says. 

“And your working relationship hasn’t changed at all?” Danny asks. 

“Nope, she still keeps me in line and refuses to bring me coffee,” I say. 

“Then two months ago, you proposed at the FDR memorial. That’s a very unusual spot,” Danny says. 

“Well, we’re a very unusual couple,” I explain because really there is nothing usual about Donna and I. 

“How was the proposal Donna?” Danny asks. 

“It was perfect. Really very sweet although you would think he would be that eloquent by the way he handles the press,” Donna says with a grin. 

“Hey, need I remind you, I got a ……” I begin but she cuts me off. 

“Yeah, yeah. 760 SAT verbal. I guess you didn’t learn about secret plans to fight inflation until law school,” Donna teases. Before I can respond, Danny cuts in. 

“Well, America, you’ve just been given an insight into the world of Josh and Donna. This banter and teasing has been daily occurrence for them for the past few years although I think this round may have gone to Donna,” Danny says. 

“That’s okay. I’ll win the next one,” I assure him. 

“So it was the evening after the proposal that you discovered Donna’s pregnancy?” Danny asks. 

“That’s right,” I say placing my hand on Donna’s stomach which has become a habit of mine over the past two months, but Donna doesn’t seem to mind. 

“Can I ask when the baby is due?” Danny asks. 

“January twentieth, Inauguration Day,” Donna says. 

“So if President Bartlet wins his bid for re-election, where will Josh be that day?” Danny asks. 

“Well, if he values his physical well being, he’ll be in the delivery room with me, although he might be able to persuade me to let him turn the TV on,” Donna says. 

“There no other place I’d be, even if it was my Inauguration,” I assure her. 

“How has the planning for the wedding gone?” Danny asks. 

“Its been incredibly hectic. If you can avoid it, don’t try to plan a wedding in under two months,” Donna warns. 

“Can you tell me about it?” Danny asks. 

“Well, CJ Cregg and Ainsley Hayes have been indispensable. We managed to get everything ready, although we had to pull a couple all nighters the past week in spite of Josh’s protests that I need my sleep,” she says. She doesn’t mention that she responded by saying she would catch up on her sleep on our honeymoon which I said was not at all likely. 

“So how many people are you expecting?” Danny asks. 

“Hundreds. Every invitation we sent out was accepted. Our wedding is going to look like a who’s who in politics. A majority of Congress, the cabinet, many on the White House staff, even a few ambassadors including Britain’s Lord John Marbury, not to mention family and friends,” Donna says. It took us three full nights to come up with a guest list. We didn’t want to offend anyone so we invited everyone that we could stand and the list just kept growing. Donna decided that the more the merrier would be applied to our wedding which was fine with me. 

“And the media presence,” Danny says. 

“Yes, there will be a limited amount of media, a couple reports that we consider friends, a few photographers, and we’ve already been told that we’ll be on the cover of People Magazine,” I say. Donna and I weren’t sure about it, but its good publicity that will help us even more so we agreed. 

“Well, let me wish you both congratulations and the best of luck. I’ll see you both at the wedding and America will see you in the papers the next day,” Danny says, ending the interview. We both thank Danny for a great interview before he leave to go edit the footage. 

* * *

_Day Before the Wedding_

**Josh & Donna’s Apartment - Donna’s POV**

Josh and I are laying in bed this morning being lazy since we don’t have to work today. Josh has been flipping through the newspaper while I read a magazine. Tonight is Josh’s Bachelor Party which has been organized by Sam. I have set very specific rules that need to be followed. 

“Now Josh, what is rule number one?” I ask for probably the tenth time. What? It never hurts to remind him. I found that during his recovery, I needed to remind him daily about the rules if I expected him to follow them. I have enlisted Ainsley’s help to make sure Sam enforces the rules, but I’ll remind Josh again just to be safe. 

“No getting drunk,” he responds. That is absolutely rule number one. I know all about his sensitive system and I don’t want him hung over at the wedding. I remember what happened after the last bachelor party he went to when I found him hung over and passed out in his office with a pair of red panties around his neck, which brings us to rule number two. 

“And rule number two?” I ask. This rule is almost as important as rule number one. 

“No strippers,” Josh says. This is very important. Normally, I probably wouldn’t care as much, but I’m beginning to put on a few pounds and I’m a bit insecure about it. I’m only three months along so its not that noticeable although my doctor did tell me that most women show earlier in during their first pregnancy than they do in subsequent pregnancies. My chest has swelled a little which Josh is incredible intrigued with although I pointed out that this increase wasn’t for his amusement, it was for the baby’s nourishment, but that did nothing to decrease Josh’s interest. I have also gained a small swelling in my stomach. You don’t notice it unless your looking for it, but when I stand in front of the mirror I can see it. I was standing there the other day with my shirt up and my hands on the swelling of my belly when Josh walked in behind me and quietly put his arms around me and his hands on mine. His eyes met mine in the mirror and we both smiled so I know that he really is happy with this new life. I know he doesn’t mind the changes in my body and that he doesn’t want other girls but still can’t help it that I don’t want Josh looking at flat, tan stomachs of strippers. 

“And what did you tell me about the last bachelor party you went to?” I ask. 

“That there wouldn’t be strippers,” Josh replies. “And…..?” I say. 

“I think there might have been strippers,” Josh replies. He was drunk at the time so he doesn’t really remember. 

“There were strippers Josh. I found you in your office the next day with one of their panties around your neck. That’s not going to happen this time,” I say. Originally Josh had said that it was a glorified male tradition so I countered by asking if I could have male strippers. You can guess how fond he was of that idea. Let’s just say that he forbid it in no uncertain terms. I wasn’t planning on having them anyway for a couple reasons. First, the only man I want to see like that is Josh, but secondly and more importantly, the First Lady and Zoey are going to be there so having strippers would be completely inappropriate. 

“Donna, you don’t need to worry, I don’t want any strippers. You’re the only woman I want,” Josh tells me. “Speaking of which, tell me again why it is that you’re not staying with me tonight,” he implores me as he takes me in his arms and kisses my neck. 

“Joshua, you know the rules. Its traditional that the groom not see the bride on the wedding day until the ceremony,” I say. This is a point we’ve been arguing all week. Josh once offered to trade the strippers for me agreeing to come home with him that night and do a strip tease for him myself. I told him that he was not in a position to bargain since there was no way he was getting strippers in the first place. This led to him giving me the puppy face which generally works well with me but didn’t work well that time. All his kissing this time does seem to be working a bit better although there is no way I’m coming back here tonight. 

“Donna, you’re not really going to leave me by myself the night before our wedding are you? Don’t you want to stay here and entertain me? I promise to keep my eyes closed in the morning until you leave,” he says as he pleads his case through kisses. Be strong. I will not give in. 

“No, Josh. I’ll entertain you the whole honeymoon, but tonight you’re on your own,” I tell him. 

“But I’ll miss your voice in the morning,” he says with another kiss, giving me a smug look because he knows that lines like that usually get to me. Not this time, Joshua Lyman. 

“Well, then I’ll call you on the phone. I don’t think there are any rules about that,” I say as I kiss him back. I’m not going get an entertainment with Josh tonight so I might as have my fun now. 

“Donna, I want my stripper now,” Josh says, lifting his eye brows. 

“Josh, didn’t we just go over the rules?” I tease. 

“Not a regular stripper. I want you,” he says in a suggestive voice. Oh. Well that’s normally not something I’d do but….. 

“Come on Donna,” he urges grabbing a CD and putting it in the player so we have music. Hmm. Well, maybe, but I have an idea. 

“You first,” I counter with a smile as I push the play button. 

“Kay,” he says with a huge grin and hops out of bed. This should be fun. 

* * *

**Sam & Ainsley’s Apartment - Ainsley’s POV**

“Sam, you’re going to remember to cut Josh off after two beers, right?” I ask. See I promised Donna that I would make sure Sam enforced the rules at Josh’s Bachelor Party. 

“Of course,” Sam says. I’ll just make sure he knows the consequences in case he decides to ignore the rules. 

“Good, because if Josh is hung over at the wedding, you are sleeping on the couch for a month,” I tell him. 

“Are you still planning on staying with Donna tonight?” Sam asks. 

“Yes Sam, I told you Donna and I are staying at CJ’s tonight so we can wake up and begin getting ready,” I explain again. This does not sit well with Sam who feels better when I’m with him because he know that the baby and I are safe. Sam is the reason the term overprotective father was created. I have finally managed to convince that I’ll be fine. I had to promise that if anything felt wrong, I would call him right away. 

“Sam, the baby’s hungry again,” I say. The baby always seems to be hungry. Sam says it’s a convenient excuse so I don’t always have to say ‘I’m hungry.’ I honestly don’t know, but blaming it on the baby gets me food quickly so I’ll stick with it for the next few months. 

“What are you in the mood for this time?” Sam asks. He’s actually been really sweet about my cravings. He’s always willing to go get me whatever it is that I want at the time. 

“I want breakfast. Let’s go for bagels. I want an egg sandwich with peanut butter and mayo,” I say. Sam wrinkles his nose in disgust. He’s been doing that a lot lately. “Sam, I can’t help it. That’s what the baby wants,” I tell him. “ 

“If you say so. I can’t understand what could possibly be going on inside you that would make you want something like that, but since you want it, lets go get it,” Sam says, grabbing his keys. 


	4. White House Wedding, A 4

**A White House Wedding**

**by:** Christina 

**Disclaimer:** I don’t own the West Wing or any of these characters. They all belong to Aaron Sorkin  & NBC.

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** nothing specific

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Wisdom of Joey Lucas, Coming Up With a Plan, Putting the Plan Into Action, Worth the Wait, A Mother’s Advise,  & Misunderstandings White House Style. A Big thanks to those who always send such great feedback: Mickey, Megan, Michelle, Megs, Laura, Shelley, and Marta. Extra Special Thanks to Lisa for always helping out, Jillian for the read over, & Susan for sharing her personal stories with me that will be reflected in later parts!! 

* * *

**Josh’s Bachelor Party at Sam’s Apartment - Josh’s POV**

The girls are hanging out at CJ’s apartment while the men get together over here at Sam’s place. It’s not your normal bachelor party since drinking is severely limited and strippers are forbidden, not that I’m complaining after the strip tease I got from Donna earlier. Thank God we had my mom and Donna’s parents stay at a hotel because otherwise we would not have been able to do what we did. The music and noise got pretty loud. Okay, need to wipe the stupid grin off my face that appears when I think back on that. 

Sam informed me right when I got here that he is cutting me off at two beers regardless of what I had to say because the punishment for not doing so is too terrible to contemplate. I’m guessing Ainsley threatened to withhold sex for an extended period of time. The President is drinking a little, and Leo is obviously abstaining, but apparently, I am the only one with specific alcohol limits because Sam, Toby, Charlie, Ed, and Larry are all drinking heavily. Toby holds his liquor pretty well, but the others are already pretty hammered, although they did receive a special dispensation from the President to bypass protocol and get drunk in his presence because of the celebration. 

We decide to play poker although I make the specific rule that President Bartlet must refrain from quizzing us on trivial subjects. He said that since this is my bachelor party, he would agree to that stipulation this one time. With half the players fairly drunk, I might actually have a decent chance at winning tonight. 

“Thank god were eating normal food here tonight. Half the stuff Ainsley eats anymore makes my stomach cringe,” Sam says as he bites into a slice of meat lovers pizza. 

“What Ainsley eats can’t be half as bad as what Donna eats,” I inform him. 

“This morning she ate an eggs sandwich with peanut butter and mayonnaise,” Sam says. Okay that’s a bit gross, but I can top it. 

“Last night Donna ate chocolate chip cookies dipped in guacamole,” I say. For once I thought I was going to be the one rushing to the bathroom. Toby mutters something about how wrong that combination is. 

“Abby used to eat strawberry ice-cream with spinach. I considered having her committed the first time I saw that combination. You guys are amateurs. The cravings only get worse as the pregnancy goes on,” the President tells us. 

“Yeah, Jenny’s cravings got pretty bad too. She once tried to get Pizza Hut to make her a tuna pizza,” Leo says. 

“Okay, am I the only one here who notices that we are eating? Can we please save the stories of god awful food combinations for another time,” Toby says while Larry and Ed nod their agreement. Sensing that they have a valid point, we drop the subject and return to the poker game. I glance at the cards in my hand. I have a full house, Kings over tens so I’m thinking I have a decent chance at winning this hand. I raise the bet by another ten dollars. At this point, Larry and Ed fold, and I am once again amazed how they seem do to everything together. Everyone else sees my bet, and by the time its back to me again, the stakes have been raised by fifty dollars. I raise the bet another twenty hoping that more people will fold. 

“I’m out,” Sam says, setting his cards on the table and grabbing another beer. I reach for one but am promptly reminded that I already reached my limit of two. Leo, Toby, and the President see my bet and raise it again. After my next raise, Toby folds and joins Sam, Larry, and Ed as they flip through the channels on the TV. 

Leo folds soon after. The President calls the hand and I have one of my rare wins. The President’s hand wasn’t very good, and I see a look pass between him and Leo causing me to suspect that they set me up to win. I collect the money which was up to five hundred dollars while the President comments that he’s sure I’ll find a way to use it on the honeymoon. I assured him that I would be able to do just that. 

We walk over and join the others on the couch. 

“What are you guys watching?” Leo asks as we sit down. 

“It’s this show called Sex and the City that Donna and Ainsley are always watching,” Sam says. Donna and Ainsley apparently bonded over this show before they started dating Sam and I, and they still get together routinely to watch it. 

“Hey, that guy looks like Cliff Calley,” Leo comments. I look for myself and see that he does bear a remarkable resemblance to him. “So what’s this show about?” Leo asks. 

“Well this guy that looks like Cliff, I think his name is Mark, has major sexual problems. See, he can’t make his girlfriend orgasm,” Sam explains. Ha! I’m thinking the Cliff I know might have had similar problems. What? A guy can hope, can’t he. At any rate, Donna is with me and not him so he can’t have been Mr. Wonderful in bed. I’m just going to assume that all men who look like Cliff Calley have chronic sexual disfunction problems since I have yet to have any evidence to the contrary. 

“Basically the show is about a bunch of girls from New York who sit around and gossip about their boyfriends,” Sam explains. 

“You don’t think our girls are doing that, do you?” I ask Sam. Donna and Ainsley telling idiot stories, and trust me they have plenty, about Sam and I to CJ is not a good thing. Sam gets a stricken look on his face so I assume he’s thinking the same thing. 

“You two are so naïve. Of Course they’re talking about you! It’s what girls do. The only one who’s safe is the President and that’s only because of his job,” Toby says. 

“I wouldn’t be to sure about that. The First Lady doesn’t seem to care that he’s the President when she’s with friends. She’ll gossip right along with the others,” Leo guesses. The President grudgingly agrees that Abby is probably telling stories about him too leaving all of us to wonder what we are going to hear about tomorrow. 

* * *

**CJ’s Apartment - Donna’s POV**

Everyone is gathered at CJ’s apartment for my bachelorette party. Obviously Ainsley and I can’t drink, but the rest of the women here are getting pretty drunk. Zoey, who just past her twenty-first birthday is also joining in the drinking, although she’s had less than the rest of them. We’ve delved into the topic that dominates at all bachelorette parties: sex. 

“Okay ladies, it is the time for the question always asked at bachelorette parties,” CJ says in a very tipsy voice. “Where is the most interesting place you’ve ever had sex?” Hmm I wonder what all the answers are going to be on this one. 

“Well Claudia Jean, since you posed the question, I suggest you go first,” the First Lady, who insists that for the evening we call her Abby, says. 

“Sophomore year of college on the huge lawn in the middle of campus at Berkley,” CJ says. We all gasp at CJ’s response. 

“That is completely illegal,” Ainsley says. 

“Yeah, well we made sure no police were around first. What can I say, I was a little wild back then,” CJ informs us. 

“Don’t you get any ideas young lady,” Abby tells Zoey. 

“Yeah I don’t want any questions about that in the press room,” CJ agrees. “Who’s next?” 

“I’ll go,” Margaret volunteers so we all turn our attention to her. “The Steam Pipe Trunk Distribution Venue.” 

“You did it in my office!” Ainsley exclaims. 

“Well you hadn’t moved in yet, so technically it wasn’t your office,” Margaret says. “Besides, haven’t you and Sam ever done it there?” Now everyone turns to look at Ainsley who is turning red. Ainsley looks over at Abby before answering. 

“Its okay. We’re all friends here. Nothings going to happen,” Abby assures her. 

“Well, we have a few times, but no one ever comes down there,” Ainsley says. “Besides, Josh and Donna have probably done it in the White House before too.” Oh crap, now everyone’s looking at me. 

“One time. Just one time! Josh really wanted to and it was so late that no one was there,” I say trying to defend our inappropriate behavior. “Can we please move on to the next person,” I beg, trying to get the attention away from me. 

“I’ll go,” Abby volunteers which causes Zoey to look a bit scared. “Well I have two, you can decide which is more interesting. First one was under the bleachers after a Notre Dame football game.” 

“Well now we know why he’s such a big Notre Dame Football fan,” CJ says with a laugh. 

“MOM!” Zoey complains putting her face in her hands. 

“Zoey, honestly, your father and I are people too. How do you think you got here?” Abby, who is quite drunk by now, says. 

“MOM!” Zoey says again. I feel a little sorry for her. I wouldn’t want to know these kind of stories about my parents. 

Abby ignores her launches into her second one. “The other one was during my residency in the examination room. Jed wanted to play doctor.” This amuses everyone but Zoey who looks like she wants to puke. 

“Can we please save what’s left of my sanity and more on to someone else,” Zoey begs. 

“I’ll go,” Ainsley offers. “I like the kitchen table. Sam says the kitchen is my favorite room in the house so its to be expected. He fell off of it once. He was doing a strip thing wearing his foul weather gear. He got tangled up in the pants and fell off.” This causes everyone in the room to crack up at Sam’s expense. I have a feeling that someone is going to mention that little story to him. 

“Who’s going next,” CJ asks. 

“Well, Zoey’s disqualified due to lack of experience. Isn’t that right Zo?” Abby says with a look at her daughter. Zoey takes the fifth on that one. I can’t say I blame her. We’re all pretty sure she has, but I wouldn’t want to tell my mom about my sex life either. 

“Well, I guess its Donna then,” Ainsley says. 

“Well, this was with a pre-Josh boyfriend. We joined the mile high club. I didn’t like it because the bathroom was so small that there wasn’t much room to move. Josh tried to convince me to give it another shot saying things are always better with him and that Airforce One has bigger bathrooms, but I absolutely refused,” I say. There is no way I would ever do that! I mean everyone would know what we were doing if the say us enter or leave together. I would totally die. 

“And we all thank you for your refusal,” CJ says with a smile. 

“What’s the most interesting place for you and Josh?” Margaret asks with interest. 

“Well about a month ago, Josh and I had sex in a barn. Its actually the date that the baby was conceived on so I guess I’m having a farm baby,” I say. I specifically left out precisely which barn but I think that Abby knows because her jaw drops. 

“About a month ago, we were at our farm in New Hampshire. That wouldn’t happen to be the barn in question, would it?” Abby asks. Ding, ding, ding, she hit it right on the button. They can all tell by the crimson color that I’m turning that she’s right. 

“Oh my God! You did it in the President’s barn?!?!” CJ exclaims. 

“Well, that’s certainly an interesting place. How did that happen?” Ainsley asks. 

“Well, Josh said last fall that I wasn’t a farm girl since I technically grew up in a condo. I decided to prove to him that I was in fact a farm girl, so I took him out there one night. He was a bit nervous about the snakes, but he got into it pretty soon. I was picking hay out of my hair the rest of the night,” I say. I look over at Abby to gage her reaction. I really hope she’s not mad. 

“Well, its not the first time that’s happened in the barn,” Abby says which elicits another groan from poor Zoey. “Just so long as you didn't scare my horse too much, I'll just forget that ever happened,” Abby says with a smile which breaks the ice and allows everyone to laugh. Well, everyone but me. Josh would be so mad if he knew I told that story. See, I promised Josh I wouldn’t tell about the barn thing, but it just slipped out. 

“None of this leaves the room, right?” I ask. They all nod, but I have a feeling they don’t mean it. I’ll just have to hope that they’re to drunk to remember this in the morning. Yeah, fat chance of that happening. Josh is totally going to find out about this. 

“Well, you’ll have another place to add to your list of interesting places after next week, the beach” Margaret says. 

“Just remember to bring a towel. You don’t want all that sand everywhere,” CJ warns, causing her to get a few looks. “What? I’m a California girl. I have to know these things!” she defends herself. 

“Are you nervous about tomorrow?” Zoey asks in what I can only assume is an attempt to prevent Abby from sharing any beach sex stories she may have. I’ve noticed that since the sex talk started, Zoey started drinking more, probably to drown out what she’s hearing. 

“Not at all,” I say with complete honesty. I can’t wait to marry Josh. 

“That’s good because spending the rest of their life with Josh Lyman would scare the hell out of any other girl,” CJ says laugh. “You are one brave woman.” 

“But Josh and Donna have been acting like a married couple for years now which is why most people thought they were together long before they actually were,” Margaret says. “Although how you put up with that ego, I honestly don’t know.” 

“I just tell him that if he doesn’t behave, then he and his ego will be sleeping on the couch and he shapes right up,” I say. 

“I’m sure that works every time,” Ainsley says. 

“I’m not nervous about the wedding, but I am nervous about having this baby. I hate pain, and I still don’t see how I am supposed to squeeze something that big out of something that small,” I admit. I’m scared to death of the delivery room. I haven’t told Josh about this, because I don’t want to worry him since there really is nothing he can do. 

“Me too,” Ainsley admits, and she’s the one who has to go through it first. 

“It won’t be as bad as you think. At least you’ll have the guys in the room to help you,” Abby says. 

“I’m not sure that in my case Josh is going to be much of a help. For some reason, I think he’ll be screaming at the medical staff,” I confess. Don’t get me wrong, I want him there, but I’m not sure he’s going to behave himself. 

“Was the President in the room with you?” Ainsley asks. 

“Yeah, Jed was there, but he wasn’t much of a help. When I had Elizabeth, Jed actually fainted when he looked down there to see her coming out. By the time he woke up, they had already cleaned her up and I was holding her in my arms. With Ellie, Jed decided he was going to be prepared and conscious the entire time. He brought tons of books on childbirth. In the delivery room he stood there quoting trivia about it to me. He kept telling me statistics about pain, ripping, and labor duration. I was ready to kill him! I told him that if he didn’t shut the hell up, he would be ejected from the room and I would finish by myself again. I think I called him jackass so many times during that labor that the doctor must have wondered if that was his actual name. For Zoey, he took a class called Daddies in the Delivery Room to teach him how to do it right. It turned out horrible too. This time all he did was tell me how wonderful I was and how beautiful I looked. I mean I was sweating and trying to push an eight pound baby from my body for hours and he was telling me I was beautiful. Again, I wanted to kill him. The man was not made to be in a hospital. I damn near broke his hand while he was holding mine. Every time I called him jackass, he called me sweetheart. I wanted to puke. After a while, I threatened to have his mouth taped shut unless he kept quiet,” Abby tells us. 

“How long were your labors?” I ask. 

“Well, your first one is usually the longest. With Elizabeth, I took twenty hours. Ellie took sixteen hours, and Zoey only took ten hours,” Abby tells us. 

“Sam wants to videotape my labor, but I keep saying no,” Ainsley says. 

“Oh my God! I would say no too! I don’t want that on tape. I would never watch it! What the hell does he think he’s going to do with it? Break it out on family get togethers?” I ask. 

“Thank God they didn’t have home video camera when I had my babies. I can totally see Jed wanting to tape it,” Abby says. 

“Does Josh want to tape it too?” CJ asks me. He better not! 

“He hasn’t said anything about it so I’m hoping he doesn’t, but possibly it just hasn’t occurred to him yet. I really hope Sam doesn’t give him any ideas,” I say. 

“Now a video of Josh in the delivery room might be fun. Who knows what he’ll do, and there’s a good chance he’ll make a fool of himself,” CJ says. 

“That’s part of what I’m worried about. What if he pissed off the doctors and I have to spend my labor doing damage control? He’s going to freak out because I’m in pain and he can’t do anything about it,” I say. 

“Tell him that if he freaks out, I’ll have him sedated,” Abby says. “Donna, don’t worry, everything is going to be fine.” I really hope she’s right. 

“Well, you’ve got months before the birth and only a few hours until the wedding. You better try to get some sleep because you won’t get much tomorrow night,” CJ says. Well, that’s true. 

The First Lady and Zoey say goodbye. Margaret, Ainsley, and I are staying with CJ tonight so we can all get up and get ready for the ceremony together in the morning. CJ sets the alarm for 8 A.M. I make a mental note to call Josh when I get up like I promised and God help him if he’s hung over. 

* * *

**The Morning of the Wedding - CJ’s Apartment - Donna’s POV** <

I hear music that I slowly bring me out of my sleeping state. I rub my eyes and struggle to wake up as my brain begins to process the words. I finally get my eyes open and see CJ, Margaret, and Ainsley singing and dancing around to the song and I start laughing. 

__Going to the chapel And we're gonna get married  
Gee I really love you And we're gonna get married   
Going to the chapel of love   
Spring is here. The sky is blue   
Birds all sing Like they do   
Today's the day We'll say "I do"  
And we'll never be lonely anymore   
Because we're Going to the chapel And we're gonna get married   
Going to the chapel And we're gonna get married   
Gee I really love you And we're gonna get married   
Going to the chapel of love 

__I smile as CJ hits the stop button on CD player. “Well okay, its not exactly a chapel, but the Rose Garden will do,” she says with a grin as they plop down on the bed.

“Are you ready to do this?” Ainsley asks me. 

“More ready than I’ve ever been for anything,” I say. 

“No cold feet?” Margaret asks. 

“Nope. No cold feet, no cold toes, nothing at all is cold,” I assure them. 

“Good, then hop in the shower. We have breakfast ready and then we have appointments for manicures, pedicures, and getting out hair done. We need to be at the White House by 3,” CJ says. 

“Can you guys give me just one minute? I need to call Josh,” I say. They all give me a knowing look. 

“And you two wonder why people thought you were already married,” CJ comments. 

“He asked me too. He likes to hear my voice first thing in the morning,” I explain. 

“Well this is the last time he’ll hear the voice of Donna Moss in the morning. Next time, your last name will be Lyman,” Ainsley says as they all get up to leave. I smile at the thought as I pick up the phone to call Josh. 

* * *

**Josh’s POV**

I am woken up by the ringing of the phone. I open my eyes which immediately land on the empty spot next to me. I reach for the phone and pick it up, phoning who’s going to be on the other end, the woman who should be curled up next to me. 

“This is the last time I’m waking up like this,” I say as a greeting. 

“Like what? You’re not hung over, are you?” Donna asks. 

“No, I stuck to my two beer limit. I meant alone. This is the last time I wake up alone,” I tell her. 

“I think we can make sure that you’re right,” she tells me. 

“Good,” I respond as I think of waking up with Donna for the rest of my life. “So what will you be doing today?” I ask her. 

“Getting ready for the wedding,” she says in a voice that makes me think she believes I just asked an idiotic question. 

“It takes you ALL day?” I ask in amazement. I usually takes Donna and hour or two max to get ready. How was I supposed to know it would take all day? 

“Yes Josh, it takes all day. All you have to do it put your tux on and make sure your hair is decent. I, however, I to get a manicure, a pedicure, my hair done, my makeup done, it is an all day thing. I only have 9 hours before we get married,” she explains. 

I’m silent. Wow, 9 hours. 9 hours before I’m a married man. 9 hours before I say goodbye to bachelorhood. I wait for the nervous feeling to set it, it doesn’t come. I wait for my feet to freeze over, but they remain warm. I realize that I’m not nervous, I’m not scared. I’m ready for this and I’ll be counting the hours down with her. 

“Josh? Why aren’t you saying anything? You’re never quiet. You’re not getting cold feet, are you?” Donna asks. Oops during my revelation I seemed to have forgot that it was my turn to respond. 

“Nope, no cold feet here. I’m ready for this Donna. I can’t wait to marry you,” I assure her. 

“I can’t wait either, but I need to go so that I’ll be ready in 9 hours,” she says. 

“Actually you only have 8 hours and 53 minutes,” I tell her with a grin. See I really am counting down. 

“I love you,” she says. 

“I love you too. Now go get ready because I don’t want to be waiting at the alter,” I say. 

“If I am late, will you wait for me?” she teases. 

“I’d wait forever, but I prefer not to,” I tell her. 

“I’ll be on time. Bye Josh,” she says. 

“Bye Donna,” I say before hanging up. 

I sit there with a stupid grin on my face for a few minutes before deciding to get around. What the hell am I supposed to do today? I don’t have to spend 9 hours getting ready so what do I do to occupy my time? 

* * *

**Donna’s POV**

Those women who don’t eat anything on their wedding day must not either by pregnant or as sure about it as I am. I sat down for breakfast and ate a huge breakfast. CJ joked that it was because I was storing up energy that I would need on my honeymoon. 

We finished our manicures and are currently getting pedicures. Now, I’ve been getting lots of foot rubs from Josh lately but he’s got nothing on the one I’m getting now. This is absolutely perfect. I think we are going to need to buy some of that warm wax that they soak your feet in. I lean my head back and close my eyes to relax and enjoy this. Just as my eyes close, my phone rings. 

“Hello,” I say, keeping my eyes closed. 

“Five hours and forty-two minutes,” I hear Josh say. I can feel my lips form a smile. 

“You’re counting the minutes?” I ask, but its really sweet that he is. 

“Yeah well since I don’t need to spend all day getting ready, I don’t have much else to do,” he says. 

“What are you doing to keep busy?” I ask him. 

“I’m at the White House. The President told me to come over to help pass the time. He, Leo, Toby, and I are watching a Mets versus Yankees game while Sam and Charlie are laying on the ground nursing their hangovers,” he tells me. I’ll have to tell Ainsley about Sam’s current state. Maybe she can call him on his cell so the ringing will hurt his head. He deserves a little punishment like that. 

“The Mets and Yankees are playing and you actually took the time to call me?” I ask. 

“Yeah well, it’s a commercial and the Mets are winning so Toby is currently quiet about how great the Yankees are so I had a minute,” he says. I know that that’s an excuse. He just wanted to talk to me, but he won’t admit it. I bet he stepped out of the room to so he wouldn’t have to call me in front of the guys. 

Before I can respond, the girl giving me the pedicure hits just the right spot on my foot and it feels so good that I let out a soft moan. 

“Maybe I should be the one to ask you what you’re doing,” Josh says, having heard my moan. He can’t be jealous, can he? I mean, I’m marrying him in under six hours for goodness sake. 

“Oh relax, I’m getting a pedicure. It feels so good. I think we need one of these wax things at home,” I tell him. 

“I think anything that makes you moan like that would be a good investment,” he tells me. He should have told me that before. This might be useful to know in the future. 

“Hey Donna, I need to go, the game’s back on. See you in five hours and thirty-six minutes,” he tells me. 

“I’ll be there,” I assure him and we both hang up. 

“Ainsley, Sam’s hung-over,” I tell her. 

“I guess when I gave him orders about Josh’s limit, I should have set one for him too,” she says as she pulls out her cell phone, obviously having the same idea I did. I smile as I listen to Ainsley’s end of the conversation while CJ can barely conceal her laughter. 

“Good Morning Sam,” she says in a loud, chipper voice. She pauses for Sam to answer. “Sam, honey, you don’t sound too good,” she says as she covers her mouth to hide her giggles. 

“Oh, I’m sorry sweetie. Your head hurts? Oh then the ringing phone must not have felt to good,” she says. She pauses again to let him speak. “When did you start feeling bad?” she asks. Obviously Sam hasn’t told her why he feels like this. He’s probably afraid that if she knows, he’ll end up on the couch tonight. 

“It just started this morning? Well, why don’t I call Dr. Bartlet to come have a look at you,” Ainsley offers while trying to keep a straight face and an even voice. I think he must be saying that that’s not necessary. “But sweetheart, I’m sure she won’t mind. She’ll want you to feel your best for the wedding tonight. She might be able to give you something to help,” Ainsley says. Another pause. “What makes you think she won’t have anything to help you? She’s a doctor, they can treat almost everything,” Ainsley says. Another pause. “You’re saying that there is nothing you can do to treat this? Sam what’s wrong with you? You’re starting to scare me,” Ainsely says as she tries desperately to keep her laughter in. Another pause during which I’m assuming he’s apologizing about scaring her and telling her what the problem really is. 

“Well its about time you tell me the truth,” Ainsley says with a laugh and a pause to listen to what he says. “No, I’m not mad. I knew you were hung over before I called. Josh told Donna and Donna told me,” she says. Another pause. “No, I’m not mad, I just wanted to see how long it take you to tell me the truth,” she explains and waits for his response. “Yes, you were good about keeping Josh from drinking and No, you don’t have to sleep on the couch,” she tells him with a smile. See, I knew that was what he was worried about. “I do however expect a back massage as punishment for not simply telling me what was wrong,” she says. Shortly after they say good-bye. 

“That was great!” CJ says. 

“Yep, tons of fun and I got a back rub out of it,” Ainsley says with a smile. 

We soon finish our pedicures and move on to get out hair done. Just 5 hours and twelve minutes until my wedding. 

* * *

**The White House - Josh’s POV**

“HA! I told you the Yankees SUCK!” I yell to Toby as the game ends with the Yankees getting an ass kicking by the Mets. 

“Yeah, well I think the fates are just being kind to you since its your wedding day. How long is it until the ceremony now?” he asks. 

“Two hours and fifty one minutes,” I reply quickly and then catch a glimpse of all the amused faces in the room. Shit, I was trying to keep my countdown a secret. I guess Toby picked up on all the times I looked at my watch. “Oh shut up,” I tell him as the room breaks up into laughter. 

“Isn’t it time for another ‘bathroom break’ when you step into the hall and call Donna?” Charlie asks. So they noticed that too. I’ve only done it a couple times. What? I just like talking to her during the day. 

“You’re totally whipped,” Sam says with a grin. 

“Don’t you talk to me about being whipped. I specifically heard you ask Ainsley whether or not you’d be sleeping on the couch tonight my friend,” I tell him. 

“Alright, as much fun as harassing Josh is, let’s save it for the wedding toasts when we can do it in front of everyone,” the President says. Oh lucky me, public embarrassment as opposed to private embarrassment. 

“Thank you for your consideration, Mr. President,” I say sarcastically. 

“Was that sarcasm I heard? Because I have a fully prepared History of Weddings lecture ready to give,” the President says with a gleam in his eyes. If he launched into that lecture, I might still be comatose when the wedding starts and then Donna might have to get past the secret service and hurt him. 

“Actually Sir, as much as I would love to hear that lecture, I need to use the bathroom,” I say and leave the room to the sound of their laughter. 

As soon as I’m out of the room, I call Donna’s cell phone. 

“Yes Josh I know, two hours and forty-four minutes until the wedding,” she says as she answers the phone. 

“You’ve got to save me,” I tell her causing her to laugh. 

“What did you do?” she asks. Why does she automatically assume that I did something? 

“I want to state for the record that this time I didn’t do anything. The President is threatening me with a History of Weddings lecture,” I tell her and she laughs at me. The woman that will be my wife in five hours and forty-three minutes laughs at my pain. 

“Poor baby,” she says. 

“Oh like you would want to hear it,” I comment. Wait, she’s a trivia nut, she might actually be crazy enough to want to hear it. 

“Well I can’t say that I’d be dying to hear it but I wouldn’t be complaining either,” she says. I have a feeling that when our kid grows up that Donna is going to be the patient one that they will go to with their problems. 

“What are you doing right now?” I ask. 

“I’m in a limo on my way to the White House to finish getting ready,” she tells me. 

“Should I wait at the entrance for you?” I tease. 

“Not unless you want CJ to hurt you,” she tell me which causes me to laugh. “I’m perfectly serious. CJ says that if you are anywhere near the entrance, she will not only ensure that I remain in the limo until she has beaten you back to the rooms assigned to you, but that she will also ensure that you’re not very useful to me during our honeymoon. Do you want that?” Donna asks me. 

“NO! I most definitely don’t want that. I plan to be VERY useful during out honeymoon. Do you want to know the time on the honeymoon count down clock too?” I asks. What? If I can have a wedding countdown, I can have a honeymoon one too. I will be no where near the entrance when they get here, but its not because CJ scares me or anything like that. 

“You have a countdown to the honeymoon too?” she asks me. 

“Yeah. The wedding is at 5:00, then the reception which we will be spending four hours at and then the honeymoon begins promptly at 11:00. So the wedding is in two hours and thirty-eight minutes and the honeymoon begins in 9 hours and thirty-eight minutes,” I inform her. 

“I can’t wait,” she tells me. 

“For which one?” I ask. 

“Both,” she replies. 

“Same here,” I tell her. 

“Okay, well we’re here so I need to get up to the residence to get ready. I’ll see you soon,” she says. 

“I love you,” I tell her. 

“I know you do mi amor, but just remember to stay right where you are for the next 10 minutes,” I hear CJ tell me. Donna must have given her the phone or CJ could have wrestled it away to keep Donna on schedule. 

“Don’t worry CJ, I’ll follow the rules,” I tell her. I really am a little scared of pissing her off, but really, who isn’t? 

“Good, Donna says she loves you. Do you think you can make it through the next couple hours with calling her so we can get ready on time?” CJ asks. 

“I’ll try,” I tell her before hanging up. I should be able to do it, right? How hard can it be to go two hours and thirty-five minutes with talking to her? 


	5. White House Wedding, A 5

**A White House Wedding**

**by:** Christina 

**Disclaimer:** I don’t own the West Wing or any of these characters. They all belong to Aaron Sorkin  & NBC.

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** nothing specific

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Wisdom of Joey Lucas, Coming Up With a Plan, Putting the Plan Into Action, Worth the Wait, A Mother’s Advise,  & Misunderstandings White House Style. A Big thanks to those who always send such great feedback: Mickey, Megan, Michelle, Megs, Laura, Shelley, and Marta. Extra Special Thanks to Lisa for always helping out, Jillian for the read over, & Susan for sharing her personal stories with me that will be reflected in later parts!! 

* * *

**The White House - Donna’s POV**

I take a deep breath and look at myself in the mirror one more time. My hair is piled on top of my head with a few soft curls dangling down. My makeup is done in light shades of pink that match my nail polish. I spent a fortune on a white, satin designer wedding dress but it was worth it. I have never felt anything this soft and smooth. Its not a flashy dress, but its perfect. Its somewhat low cut. It is very tight fitting until my waist where it begins to spread outward. It has medium length train and a long veil. 

CJ arranged with a local jeweler for me to borrow a diamond necklace to adorn my neck and a diamond tiara to hold the veil in place. She said that as a maid of honor it was her job to make sure that I had my something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue and that those would be the borrowed things. 

Ainsley, my other maid of honor, brought me a blue silk garter to wear under my dress for Josh to remove and throw at the reception. My dress is my new thing. My something old are the pearl earrings that both my grandmother and my mother wore in their weddings. 

Everyone assures me that I’ll take Josh’s breath away and I sure hope so. I look in the mirror and even my hypercritical eye can’t complain. I take a deep breath and announce that I’m ready to go. I take my father arm and allow him to lead me down the stairs. We pause at the top as he looks at me and smiles. 

“You ready sweetheart?” he asks. 

"Absolutely." He holds my arm tightly as we take the first step towards my new life... in a few moments I will be marrying Joshua Lyman. 

* * *

**Josh’s POV**

I’m standing in front of a mirror trying to get my bow tie to look decent, but failing miserably. I don’t even remember the last time I had to do this by myself. Donna always does this for me. I pull the thing off again after wishing that Toby hadn’t confiscated my cell phone so I couldn’t call Donna again. Just as I am about to give it another shot, my mother walks into the room carrying a small package. 

“You look very handsome son, but then I’m sure you know that. Now if only you could learn to fix your own tie,” my mom says as she sets her package down. She reaches out and takes the tie from me. “I used to do this for your father so I guess I can do it for you too,” she says as she begins to fix it for me. 

“I’m so happy this day is finally here. It was a long wait, but I’m glad you waited for her. She’s the one Josh, the one you’ll never tire of,” my mom tells me. 

“Believe me, mom, I know that,” I tell her with a smile. 

“Good,” she says as she finishes my bow tie. She picks up the package she brought in with her and places it in my hands. I unwrap white linen cloth to discover a beautifully carved glass. 

“Your father wanted this to be the glass you broke at your ceremony, so I'm handing it to you in his honor. He always liked Donna, and I know he's here with us today, Joshua,” my mother tells me. I can feel the lump in the back of my throat. If I had one wish, it would be that my father knew that Donna was the one I was going to marry, but somehow I think he may have know that. He only met her in person a couple times when he visited the campaign, but he spoke to her nearly everyday on the phone. I somehow think that he might have known, I just wish that I had been able to tell him. 

“Don’t get all sad now. He wouldn’t want that. This is your day to be happy and your father’s smiling down at you,” my mom tells me. I smile at her before she announces “Now lead me out there and let’s get you married already.” 

* * *

I am standing at the front of the aisle with my best man Sam to my right and Toby and Charlie to the right of him. I look out in the audience and see all my friends and family smiling back at me. I glance and my mom who is sitting with Leo on one side and the President and First Lady on the other. I’ve never seen her look happier. 

The music begins to play and I feel my heart swell as I wait for my Donna to walk down the aisle as time seems to move at an excruciatingly slow pace. First Margaret walks slowly down the aisle. Once she is about half the way down, CJ begins to walk toward me. Ainsley follows when CJ is half way there and I take a second to glance at my best friend. Sam is smiling wide at her and she returns his smile. I would guess that he is thinking of a day in the not too distant future when Ainsley walks down an aisle again, this time wearing white instead of blue. As Ainsley nears me, I turn my attention back to the end of the aisle to wait for Donna to appear. 

The music changes slightly to indicate to our guests that the bride will be coming and they all stand up. A couple seconds later I see Donna set into view on the arm of her father. I have never in my life seen anyone look so beautiful. She literally takes my breath away. I don’t know what it is I did that made me deserve her, but what ever it was, I’m sure am glad I did it. 

* * *

**Donna’s POV**

My heart is pounding as I walk down the aisle with my father toward Josh. I give him my brightest smile when I see the huge dimpled smile on his face. There is no one on earth who is happier than I am right now. 

I finally reach him and stand beside him with my father just behind us. The beginning of the ceremony passes in a blur for me. I hear my father say that he is the one who gives me away before kissing my cheek and going to sit with my mom. I hear the minister ask if there is anyone who knows of any reason that Josh and I should not wed and know that there isn’t anyone because how could anyone not see that Josh and I are meant to be together. 

“Do you have the rings?” I hear the minister ask. Josh turns to Sam who hands him the first ring, the one that Josh will place on my finger. 

“This couple has decided to compose their own vows. Josh, you may proceed,” the minister instructs and I wait to hear the words that Josh has written. 

“Donnatella, we've known each other for just under four years now. I still remember the day that you walked into the campaign office, hair all back in a scrunchie thing, just ready to get down to business. You came in to that small hole of an office and that began the most incredible journey that I've ever been on. Donna, I wouldn't have made it if it hadn't been for you. My heart almost broke when I got the note that you'd left the campaign. But when I saw you walk back in the office I just wanted to run to meet you and hold you so you couldn't ever get away again. However, being me I decided instead to tell you that there was a pile of work on the desk that had been building up and I needed you to fix it. The night of the Illinois Primary was tough, and despite knowing each other for only a few short months, you knew exactly what I needed. You were there for me, and you seemed to know exactly what I needed and when. You were a shoulder when I needed to cry; and my tissue supplier when my own stock ran out. After that night in May two years ago, your strength on my behalf was unbelievable. I know that I've never been able to properly thank you for that, and I know that I never will. You were there for everything, through everything and only afterwards did I truly wake up to what I thought I knew. Donna, when you came into the Campaign Office, I thought I saved you that day, but it turns out that you saved me. I've promised many things in my life and in my career, but this is a sacred promise that I make to you, in front of all these people. Donna, I promise to love you, to be there for you whenever you need me. I owe you my life, and all I can do is promise to spend whatever years I have left on this earth, showing you how much I adore you. I love you, Donnatella Moss and there is nothing that would make me prouder or happier being your husband,” he says as he hold my hand and looks directly into my eyes. I felt the tears start forming at the beginning and by the end, they are freely flowing down my face. I know I’m not supposed to just talk in the middle of a wedding ceremony, but its my own wedding and I can do what ever I want, besides when did Josh and I ever do things the normal way? 

“I love you so much,” I tell him because I need to say it. He smiles at me and brushes away one of my tears with his thumb. 

I glance over at the Sam and Toby, the speech writing team, next to him. I know they must have helped Josh polish his words. “Thank you,” I tell them. 

Sam and Toby both shake their heads. “He did it all himself,” Sam tells me. I glance at Josh who is still smiling at me. 

“Wow! You wrote those beautiful words all by yourself?” I ask. He nods and under normal circumstances he would normally remind me that he scored a 760 SAT word, but he refrains from doing so this time. I want to kiss him right now, but that’s not allowed yet and I’m not going to break that rule. We stare at each other for a minute before the minister reclaims our attention. 

“Take the ring and place it on her finger saying with this ring, I thee wed,” he instructs Josh. 

Josh smiles at me and keeps eye contact while sliding the ring slowly onto the ring finger of my left hand. “With this ring, I thee wed,” he says as he gives my hand a squeeze. 

“Do you have the other ring?” the minister asks. Ainsley hands the ring to me that I will place on Josh’s at the end of my vows. The minister then nods at me to begin my vows that I have written. 

* * *

**Josh’s POV**

I stand here holding the hand of the woman who minutes from now will be my wife waiting to hear the words she wrote for me. 

“Joshua. I'm not as half as linguistic as Sam or Toby are, and know that I know that you wrote those beautiful words, mine is more humorous than anything,” she says with a pause and I smile at her, knowing she underestimates her own ability. “But, this is what I have to say to you. These words are not mine, but I don't think the author will mind if I borrow them for a few minutes. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in the truth,” she says and I recognize that she is quoting from the Bible. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the President smile in approval of her words. “Josh, there are some of those that don’t apply to you, however the next few words in that passage are definitely you..” I smile knowing what’s coming up. I hear the emotion in Donna’s voice as she gets choked up saying these words to me. “Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. And love never fails. Josh, I promise to never fail you, to always protect you, to trust you, and above all to love you. Josh, for me you are the personification of love, and I will always treasure you for the gift that you are. I love you more than anything in the world and nothing will ever change that,” she says. I smile at her a wipe away another of her tears. 

The minister instructs her to place the ring on my finger. She slides the ring on saying “With this ring, I thee wed,” and I smile because Donna Moss is now my wife. 

The minister looks at us and says the words that I have been waiting for so long to hear. “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.” 

“It would be my pleasure to do just that,” I say aloud which makes all out friends laugh. I take a step closer to Donna, closing all the distance between us. I lift up her veil to reveal the face that I love. I smile at her before leaning in to place my lips on hers. I’m not really sure how much I am supposed to kiss her given that we are at the White House and in front of many leading politicians and media personalities, but once my lips touch hers, I realize that I don’t care much about protocol. She’s my wife, damn it, and I can kiss her like I want to. I deepen the kiss a little because this is our first kiss as a married couple and it has to be memorable. We don’t let ourselves get carried away and soon pull back so as not to enter into the realm of inappropriate behavior. 

When we part, Toby hands me the glass that my mother presented to me earlier with a smile on his face. “kol hakabod,” he whispers and I smile back as I recognize that to be the Hebrew phrase for congratulations. 

I catch Donna’s eye and hold the covered glass out between us. She takes a hold of it with me, and together we place it on the ground. I keep a hold of her hand as I place my foot on top of the glass and step down on it, breaking it into many pieces. I lean in for another kiss before the music begins to play. When we pull back, Donna and I walk hand in hand down the aisle to the sound of applause from our guests. Donna is finally my wife and now as Zoey would say, it’s time to party. Well for the four hours before our honeymoon starts anyway, and then real party begins. 

* * *

**The White House - Donna’s POV**

As soon as Josh and I get to the end of the aisle and into the White House to make our way to the ball room where the reception will be, Josh pulls on my hand a little and leads me down the familiar corridors to the West Wing. I smile as he pulls me into his office. As soon as we get the door closed, his lips are on mine. I throw my arms around his neck and return his kiss. We’re not on the clock right now so I feel no guilt about doing this here. This is where our relationship grew so it only seems right that we come here right after we are officially married. After a few minutes, Josh’s hands start roaming and I am forced to remind him that now is not the time. Well have the entire week for that, but right now, our guests are waiting and if we don’t show up, they’ll know why. It seems that I am always the one who has to comment on this. 

“Josh, we have a reception to go to. I think they’ll notice if the guests of honor are missing,” I say, pulling back a little. 

“I just want to kiss my wife for a few minutes before behaving for the next few hours. I think they’ll understand,” he says as he leans in to kiss my neck. 

“I think you wanted to do a little more than kiss me,” I tell him. I know exactly what he wants to do and he’s just going to have to wait until tonight. 

“Is there anything wrong with that, Mrs. Lyman?” he asks as he spins me around so I’m leaning against his desk. He takes advantage of the fact that I’m absorbing hearing my new name for the first time and start kissing me again. Must be strong. 

“Moss-Lyman, and no nothing is wrong with it except the time. Has the clock struck zero on your honeymoon countdown?” I ask him as I lift my eyebrow. He reluctantly shakes his head. “How much time is left on it?” I ask. 

“Four hours and five minutes,” he admits. 

“Then we will put this on hold for the next four hours and five minutes,” I say. 

“No kissing?” he asks, giving me his sad face. 

“You can kiss me at the reception,” I say with a smile, knowing that the kind of kissing there will be limited due to all the guests. 

“Or I could just kiss you now,” he says as he kisses my again. Josh isn’t very good at following directions when he doesn’t want to. 

“Tonight, I promise…” I whisper into his ear before leaning in to his lips for a moment. “Come on, you promised, four hours at the reception. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave,” I tell him. That gets his attention. He stands up and begins straightening his tux as I fix my dress and wipe my lip stick from his face. I fix his tie for him before giving him a big smile as he takes my hand and leads me to the main ball room where the reception is being held. 

We weren’t in Josh’s office all that long, but in that time, everyone has already gathered in the ball room, awaiting our arrival. See, it’s a damn good thing I didn’t let Josh have his way or they would be waiting a lot longer and know exactly what we were doing that was making us so late. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, the new Mr. And Mrs. Joshua Lyman,” the President announces as we enter the ballroom hand-in-hand to the sound of their applause. One by one they come up to congratulate us. 

Sam seems to be taking note of our slightly wrinkled clothing and my lack of lip stick. “Wow Josh, I guess you can work really fast. While that’s good at the office, Donna’s not going to like it much at home,” Sam says with a wicked grin. Josh does not seem to find the joke as amusing as Sam does. 

“I’ll have you know that timing is never a problem for me,” Josh tells him. He’s actually right about that. I have no complains about our sex life. 

“Don’t listen to him. He’s just jealous that your getting sex today and he’s not,” Ainsley tells us. 

“But…” Sam starts as he turns to Ainsley with a pathetic look on his face. 

“I said if you’re good. Mocking your best friend on his wedding day is not good,” Ainsley tells him. 

“Looks like you might be the one with the problem. Ainsley has no problem refusing you, but Donna can’t resist me,” Josh tells Sam with a smug grin. 

“Um, Josh, what did I just do in the office?” I remind him. 

“I think you know,” he says lifting his eyebrows suggestively so Sam will get the wrong idea. Ainsley sees through his act and starts laughing. Sam catches on and joins in her laughter. “Oh shut up. At least I’ll be getting some tonight and that’s still in question for you,” Josh retorts and Sam ceases his laughter as Ainsley continues giggling while Josh leans in and whispers to me that I need to work on being a more supportive wife. Not likely. He married me, not someone else so I’m what he’s getting. 

“You two are pathetic, you know that. The fact that these two women are pregnant tells me that you to have nothing to complain about,” CJ tells Sam and Josh. “Congratulations Donna, I don’t know what made you want him, but since you obviously love him, I’m glad he’s yours. And you, if you hurt her, you’ll be answering to me,” CJ tells Josh. I don’t think she needs to worry about that. Josh might say things that piss me off every once in a while, but I don’t think he’ll ever do anything that will hurt me permanently. 

“Hey, she doesn’t get threatened if she hurts me?” Josh complains. I know he’s teasing. He knows that I would never hurt him. 

“No, because if she does, you’ve probably given her a good reason too. Lord knows I’ve wanted to hurt you enough times,” CJ jokes well except for when he made up his secret plan to fight inflation. She might have actually wanted to hurt him for that one. 

“Congratulations Josh, here’s hoping you make as good of a husband as you do a politician. And Donna, lets hope he doesn’t cause as many headaches at home as he does at the office,” the President tells us as he and the First Lady make their way over. “No, seriously Josh, we might joke about it a lot, but we’re proud of you. You couldn’t have done anything smarter than asking Donna to marry you. You are two wonderful people and I couldn’t be happier that you finally woke up and saw what all of us knew was there all along,” the President says. I look at Josh who is smiling at me and I know that this is meant to be, we were just too stupid to see it for a long time. Josh uses the “we’re making up for lost time” excuse a lot when he wants something but I don’t have to use it this time. I reach up and capture his lips with mine simply because I want to. He’s my husband and I don’t need any other reason than that. 

“I’d say its about time the two of you had your first dance as a married couple,” Abby suggests. Everyone agrees and Josh leads me out to the middle of the dance floor. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me close as I wind my arms around his neck. 

“Ladies and Gentlemen, the first dance for the newlyweds,” someone announces as the music begins to play. The song they play seems to fit our relationship perfectly. 

__When I first saw you, I saw love. And the  
first time you touched me, I felt love. And   
after all this time, you're still the one I love. 

__I think we did feel it back then, but we were just to stupid and to scared to realize what it meant. It was safer for us to be just friends, but there was no way we would be able to stay like that forever.

__Looks like we made it  
Look how far we've come my baby   
We mighta took the long way   
We knew we'd get there someday 

We certianly did take the long way, in fact I think it would be safe to say we took the longest way possible. No matter what we did, we could escape that was bound to happen in the long run. 

__They said, "I bet they'll never make it"  
But just look at us holding on   
We're still together still going strong 

After everything we’ve been through, especially with Anne Stark a few months ago, many people seem shocked that we’re still together and still so much in love, but not the people who know is best. Hard times bring us closer together and nothing is strong enough to tear us apart. 

__You're still the one  
You're still the one I run to  
The one that I belong to   
You're still the one I want for life   
You're still the one   
You're still the one that I love  
The only one I dream of   
You're still the one I kiss good night 

“Hey Donna, am I really the only one you dream of?” Josh whispers in my ear. 

“Josh, you’re the only one I’ve dreamed of for a long time now,” I assure him. 

“Good because you’ve filled my dreams for years,” he tells me as he kisses me in the middle of the dance floor. See, I told him that kissing here would be allowed. 

* * *

**Josh’s POV**

Well Donna did keep true to her promise that we could kiss here at the reception. The problem with kissing Donna is that once I start, its really hard to stop. 

__Ain't nothin' better  
We beat the odds together   
I'm glad we didn't listen   
Look at what we would be missin' 

Thank God we’re not missing this. This is what my life was missing for too long. The odds might have been stacked against us, but I’m never one to let that bother me. The odds were stacked against us four years ago, and we managed to get Jed Bartlet elected President. The odds are against us again this year, and you can bet we’ll do it again. Pulling off long shots seems to be our specialty. 

__They said, "I bet they'll never make it"  
But just look at us holding on   
We're still together still going strong 

Yep, Donna and I will make it. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life. 

__You're still the one  
You're still the one I run to   
The one that I belong to   
You're still the one I want for life   
You're still the one   
You're still the one that I love   
The only one I dream of   
You're still the one I kiss good night 

I can’t imagine doing any of those things with any other woman. I’m not one who easily falls in love and once I do, its hard to keep me there, but not with Donna. I’ll never tire of kissing her good night or waking up with her beside me. This is a different kind of love than any I’ve ever known before. I look in her eyes and I can see all I’ll ever need. I don’t care that hundreds of eyes are on us, I lean in and kiss her, a kiss that lasts the rest of the song that tells our story so perfectly. 

__You're still the one  
You're still the one I run to   
The one that I belong to   
You're still the one I want for life   
You're still the one   
You're still the one that I love   
The only one I dream of   
You're still the one I kiss good night

I'm so glad we made it   
Look how far we've come my baby 

__The song ends and people start clapping so we reluctantly end our kiss, but I know that we’ll continue it later tonight. For the parent’s dance, I dance first with my mother while Donna dances with her father. Leo has filled in for my father and is currently dancing with Donna’s mother. I’ve never seen my mom look so happy, although I think she may even be happier on the day that Donna delivers her long awaited grandchild. Part way through the song, we switch partners. I find myself dancing with Donna’s mom, Donna dances with Leo, and my mother dances with Donna’s father.

“I’ve never seen Donna happier,” her mom tells me. “You just make sure that continues.” 

“I will,” I assure her. 

“Good, because I’ve never liked any of her past boyfriends. You’re the first one I approve of,” she tells me. 

“I call the others gomers,” I tell her which makes her laugh. I think we’re going to get along well. We are dancing close to Leo and Donna and I am able to pick up on what they are saying. 

“You know, I might give him a lot of crap, but he’s like a son to me,” Leo tells Donna and she nods her head. Donna knows that Leo and I have a special bond. He’s been almost like a surrogate father to me. “You filled a place in his heart that’s been empty for a long time. I’ve never known Josh to be happier than he is right now. I’m thrilled for both of you,” he tells Donna. The reason he’s never seen me happier is because I’ve never been happier. 

“Thank Leo,” Donna tells him. I know his words mean a lot to her because Leo is not usually one to express his feelings so openly. 

“You’re welcome kid. If you ever need anything, you come see me okay,” he tells her and she nods. 

“Leo, as much as you think of him as a son, he thinks of you as a father. This baby is lucky because its going to have you for a grandfather,” Donna tells Leo. He’s touched, I can tell, but Donna’s right. Leo will be a grandfather to our baby. 

“I’ve never been a grandfather before,” Leo says, apparently not sure how to respond to Donna. 

“Well, I’m sure you can go talk to the President who can give you some kind of grandfather trivia lecture,” Donna jokes to lighten the mood and succeeds in making Leo laugh. 

“No thanks, I think I’ll wing it,” Leo says with a smile as the dance ends. He leads Donna back over to be and I wrap my arm around her waist. 

Everyone comes over to join us at the table because I have insisted that Donna sit down for a few minutes. CJ loves to dance and has managed to dance nearly every song while most of us sit here talking. After a while she comes over to me and I know its my turn. 

“Dance with me, farm boy,” she says to me. Farm boy?? Where the hell did that name come from. I glance at Donna who is turning slightly red while Ainsley is trying to mask her laughter. I’m not sure if she’s laughing at me or something Sam said, but my CJ’s comment I’m thinking that Donna might have spilled some information about our night in the Bartlet’s barn. I made her promise not to divulge the details of that. I mean there are plenty of things that she wouldn’t want me to share with the guys that I have kept secret. For instance, would Donna want me to tell everyone about the special version of the Jackal that she did for me. Although I still smile thinking about it, I really don’t think she’d want the others think about it too. 

I wanted to get more information out of CJ to find out if Donna had in fact spilled, but CJ said no more about it. I didn’t want to push just in case it turns out that Donna did keep our secret and CJ just happened to pick that odd nickname for me. 

“So what did you all talk about at Donna’s Bachelorette party last night?” I asks. Yeah, that wasn’t obvious at all. 

“What do women usually talk about at those?” CJ throws back. Sex. They must have talked about sex. CJ sees the look on my face and knows what I’m thinking. “Yes Josh, that’s exactly what we talked about,” she tells me. That can’t be good. I really wish I knew exactly which stories were told. 

“So, hear any interesting stories?” I ask. 

“Yes, and let me just tell you for future reference, sex in the White House is not a good idea. Thank God Donna had enough sense to only let it happen once” CJ tells me. I give a little snort. Only happen once? It happened twice. See this is another one that Donna wouldn’t want CJ to know about. See on the anniversary of my creation of the secret plan to fight inflation, Donna was teasing me about being barred from the Press Room. I told her that CJ didn’t scare me and that I could go in the Press Room any time I felt like it. Donna dared me to prove it so I complied. It was late at night so no one was there and Donna started teasing me about how this didn’t count, that I would have to do it when actual people were there. We started arguing about whether or not it counted and one thing lead to another. We ended up doing it behind CJ’s podium. I’m pretty sure Donna told CJ about the time in my office and not the time in her Press Room. The reason I think this is because I’m still alive right now and if CJ knew about that, I might not be. 

“Is there something I should know about Josh,” CJ asks. 

“I don’t think you want to know about this one,” I tell her truthfully. 

“You two didn’t do it in my office, did you?” she asks. 

“Of course not. We would never do it in your office,” I assure her. What? It’s the truth. It didn’t happen in her office, it happened in her Press Room. Those are two completely different places. I think CJ is torn between wanting to know what happened and being scared of finding out the answer. 

The song ends and I wander back over to the table to find Donna. She’s not there. I should have known that she wouldn’t remain sitting and resting while I was gone. My eyes scan the dance floor and I spot her dancing with Sam. I smile because he’s one of the few guys I don’t mind dancing with my wife. Okay so I admit, I’m a little jealous. 

I’m standing there watching my wife dance with my best friend when Congressman Matt Skinner comes over. 

“Congratulations Josh,” he tells me with a smile. 

“Thanks Matt,” I say. 

“I’ve known for a long time that you had a thing for her. Telling me her relationship with the insurance guy wasn’t going to last simply because you said so seal it,” he tells me. 

“Well I was right about that, wasn’t I?” I say. 

“Yeah, you were. So is this one going to last?” he asks. 

“Absolutely, because I say so,” I reply, knowing those were the words he expected. He and I stand there talking until Donna returns. Matt then asks Donna for a dance and I add him to the list of people I don’t mind dancing with Donna, I mean the man is gay after all. I go steal Zoey away from Charlie for a dance hoping maybe she’ll tell me more of what the women talked about last night. 

* * *

**Josh’s POV**

I didn’t get much information about what Donna said from Zoey. She did tell me that she thinks she’s permanently scarred from storied she heard about her parents. I offered her Stanley’s phone number because if I hear those stories about my parents, then I would need it too. 

Currently, we are all seated at the long table at the front of the room getting ready for the toasts. Sam as best man gets to go first. Sam stands up and taps the side of his glass to get people’s attention. 

“It's my job to write speeches for, of all people, the President of the United States. So, you would think, writing a toast to my two of my best friends would take an hour tops. Well, five hours and sixteen cups of coffee later I fought to properly describe the love between these two people I am proud to call my friends,” Sam begins. “There are very few flattering words I can use to describe Josh. But I did the best I could. He's determined, a hard worker, and has an equally hard head. And that's the good stuff! Donna, is vibrant, full of life, always anticipating the next curve and ever ready to pick Josh up when he stumbles down and put him back together. I’ve known Josh since college and I’ve never seem him more happy then the past four years since Donna came into his life. These two just clicked. They complete each other’s sentences just as they complete each other’s lives. I’ll never know why it took them so long to see this but I’m thrilled that they finally did. The love between these two is amazing. I know in a heart beat that Josh would lay down his life for her. After the events at Roslyn two years ago, Josh confessed to me that he immediately thanked God that Donna wasn’t there when the shooting took place. I was amazed. The man had been shot and he was thanking God for the fact that Donna didn’t have to be there. That’s when I knew about these two. As much as he wanted her by his side, he’d rather have her safe. I also saw Donna in the waiting room. She might not have known her feelings then, but they were clearly written on her face. When he woke up, it was Donna’s face he wanted to see, and it was Donna who put her life on hold to help him put his back together again. For those who don’t believe in true love, just observe these two for a day and I guarantee you’ll be converted. So let’s raise our glasses to the couple who’s love is an example to us all, to Josh and Donna, may your love continue to be an example to us all,” Sam says as he lifts his glass to us. 

“To Josh and Donna,” everyone in the room says as they lift their glasses to us. I look at Donna who looks like she might cry, the mention of Roslyn still makes her emotional. I lean in and kiss her in front of everyone which earns us some cheers. 

CJ is the next to stand up. “As you all know, I’m the President’s Press Secretary and it is my job to protect the administration from scandal. If you had come to me and said that I was going to have to deal with a member of the senior staff falling for his assistant, I would have been not at all please and scared to death of the scandal that would ensue. That would all change once I knew that the two people in question were Josh and Donna. When Donna first walked into Josh’s office four years ago, I though, oh crap, Josh is going to get in trouble with his beautiful, blond assistant and cause me a major headache, but that didn’t happen. The chemistry was there from the beginning, but they didn’t act on it. I began to relax, thinking that nothing would happen between them, which I thought was a very good thing at the time. Then as time passed and their relationship grew, I began to think it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if something happened between the two of them. In the past year, their feelings became obvious to everyone and I found myself wishing for what I once dreaded. When Donna finally got the courage to tell Josh how she felt, because Josh was determined that she admit it first, I was thrilled for the two of them and not the least bit worried about the press reaction because I knew that whatever it was, it was worth it for these two to be together. These two love each other, and that’s all that really matters. So please raise your glasses to Josh and Donna who taught me that some things are worth any consequences they might bring,” CJ says as she lifts her glass to us. 

Ainsley is the next to stand up. “I haven’t know Josh and Donna nearly as long as CJ or Sam. I actually met them about a year and a half ago when I came to work for the Bartlet administration. I watched their daily interactions with one another and then one of the first questions I asked Sam was ‘Is Josh Lyman dating his assistant?’ Sam replied with ‘it’s complicated.’ This confused me since I thought that question could only have two answers: yes or no. I didn’t really understand Sam’s answer then, but I do now. They weren’t technically dating, but they acted like they were and they sure wanted to be. They avoided dating other people and got jealous when the other one did. As Sam put it ‘de nile’ isn’t just a river in Egypt, it is what was going on in Josh’s office and bullpen for the previous three years. I think these two might have set a record for how long their were in denial for, but thankfully, someone finally knocked some sense into their thick skulls. No matter what anyone on either side of the partisan divide says, these two were made for each other and deserve to be together. To Josh and Donna,” Ainsley says as she lifts her glass. 

After all the toasts have been completed, the President tells us its time to cut the cake, so Donna and I walk over to it to do the honors. The President holds up a long, thin box for us to open. 

“This time, I didn’t have Charlie pick the knife. I had this one special ordered from the best knife shop in Europe, and had it engraved for the two of you,” he says as he turns it over so we can read it. ‘Josh and Donna, nothing warms my heart more than seeing the love so evident between to wonderful people. In so many ways, you remind me of Abby and I and I know you’ll be just as happy in your marriage as we are in our. Best Wishes Jed Bartlet.’ Donna gets emotional again and actually hugs the President, who doesn’t seem to mind at all. He whispers something in her ear that makes her laugh and I am left wondering what he said. 

Donna gives me a quick kiss and a smile before telling me to cut the cake. I cut two pieces and hand her one of them knowing that we are now going to do the traditional feed eat other the cake thing. She smiles at me as she takes the cake and I can see her eyes shining. I return the smile as we both lift our pieces of cake to feed the other. My arm is about half way to her lips when her hand smashes the whole piece of cake in my face. She has succeeded in smearing the cake all across my face. As I am sputtering and wiping frosting from my face, I can hear her laughter and the clicking of cameras capturing this moment on film. 

“He told me to,” Donna says, indicating the President who is having a good laugh at my expense. 

“Come here,” I say beckoning Donna over. Donna shakes her head at me, obviously fearful of retaliation on my part. Come on, do you really think I’d do that?? 

“Come on Donna, I know you want some of this cake. Its really good,” I say as I lick some of the frosting off my lips. She’s waiving. She’s tempted. I know I shouldn’t use her cravings for sweets against her, but it won’t hurt to do it just this once. I hold the piece of chocolate cake up and take a bite, and I know she’s caving since that’s been a particular weakness of hers these past few weeks. 

“Put the cake down and I’ll come over,” she says. Sam is standing on the other side of me and I catch his eye. He knows what I want and nods so I set the cake down like she asked. As soon as I do, Donna walks over to me. She leans in and kisses some of the cake off my cheek. While she’s distracted with that, I stick one hand out behind my back and Sam sets a piece of cake on it. Just as Donna pulls back from kissing my face, I catch her off guard and hit her in the face with the piece Sam gave me. I swirl my hand around, making sure to get her face just as messy as she got mine. 

“JOSHUA!!!!” Donna yells as she pulls back. What?? All’s fair in love and war, right? 

“Fair play, Donnatella,” I remind her. I grab her hand and pull her to me. I lean in and kiss her, tasting botht the cake and her mouth. After a minute, I whisper in her ear “Remember how good I said the cake tasted? You taste better.” She smiles at me and after that everyone comes up to get their cake as our food fight has ended in a draw. 

* * *

**Donna’s POV**

Josh keeps reminding me that the countdown clock for our honeymoon is running out, and we’ll be leaving soon. I’ve actually managed to get him to dance nearly all night, which is an amazing feat if you know Joshua Lyman. I even managed to convince him that I don’t need to take a break and rest ever fifteen minutes like he seemed to think. 

“What do you say we throw the bouquet and garter, have one last dance or two, and then go,” I offer, seeing as how Josh seems ready to leave. Josh readily agrees, and we inform the President of our plan. 

“Alright everyone, we need all the single women to gather around. The bride is about to throw the bouquet,” the President announces. At that, the married women and the men move toward the sides of the room while all the single women gather in the middle. I stop CJ, Ainsley, and Zoey standing near the front and decide to aim it in their direction. I cover my eyes, count to three, and let it fly. I turn around quickly to watch and see who catches it. It looks like my aim was pretty good because it heads right to my friends. Zoey happens to catch it as the cameras flash. I catch a glimpse of the President shaking his head at Charlie right after that happened. 

Next, its time for Josh to throw the garter. He pulls a chair over for me to sit in while all the single men gather in the middle of the room. The President has to threaten to issue an executive order to make Leo and Toby join the rest of the unattached men. I sit in the chair that Josh has brought over so he can take the blue garter off my leg. Josh kneels down in front of me and places my leg up on his shoulder. Josh reaches his hand out toward my thigh to remove the garter when the President speaks up. 

“Josh, in my house, we use my family’s rules,” the President says. 

“What rules would that be?” Josh asks. Generally, Josh does not like rules as I found out during his recovery. 

“The rules on how to properly remove the garter from the bride,” the President says. 

“There’s rules on that?” Josh asks in disbelief. 

“Absolutely. Put your hands behind your back,” the President orders and Josh has no choice but to obey. Its too bad he doesn’t listen to be as well as he does the President. “Now, remove the garter using only your mouth,” the President says. Somehow I think Josh is going to like this rule better than he liked some of mine. Josh looks a little dumbfounded at first about the idea of doing that in front of everybody, but soon gives me a big grin as he comes to like the idea. 

“Hey Charlie, since Zoey just caught the bouquet, you better pay attention so you’ll know how to do this,” Sam says as he elbows Charlie who is standing next to him. Charlie shoots Sam a dirty look that makes Sam laugh after the President mutters something about a transfer to the Yukon to Charlie. 

“Get on with it already,” we hear Toby say from his spot on the other side of Sam. Wouldn’t it be a riot if he were the one to catch it? 

Josh gives me a huge, dimpled smile before he makes a big show of putting his hands behind his back. He places his head on my thigh and places a soft kiss near the top of the garter before latching onto the garter with his mouth and dragging in slowly down my leg. When he finally gets it off, he twirls it over his head like he won some big prize or something. Well, at least this is better than him holding my underwear in the bullpen. Finally Josh turns around, covers his eyes, and throws the garter. The garter flies straight toward Charlie, Sam, Leo, and Toby so I think that Josh tried to aim it a little just like I did. Toby is standing there with his arms folded so there is no possible way for him to catch it. Sam ends up catching it and repeats Josh’s act of twirling it around. 

“Looks like maybe you should have been the one paying attention to how it is done,” Charlie tells him. 

“Maybe I should have been,” Sam comments as he looks across the room at Ainsley who is smiling at him. 

“Now since Zoey and Sam were the two lucky ones, they have to dance this next song together,” CJ says. 

The President jokes about the ability to ship him off to Antarctica if he doesn’t approve of the dance. Josh takes my hand and we walk out onto the dance floor with Zoey and Sam while Charlie asks Ainsley to dance and CJ drags Toby onto the floor insisting that he get some wedding spirit. 

* * *

**Sam’s POV**

“So, kid, you’re going to be the next one to get married?” I ask Zoey as we start to dance. 

“Hmm I’m not sure about that. If I do though, I hear that you could provide some great entertainment at my bachelorette party. I’ve always loved a man in foul weather gear,” Zoey says with a grin. I’m going to kill Ainsley. I can’t believe she told them about that. I bet she forgot to mention how damn slippery that table was too. 

“You heard about that last night?” I ask. 

“Yes, that and many other stories, most of which I’d pay good money to forget,” she tells me. Hmm, I’d love to hear some of these stories. 

“Care to share?” I ask. 

“What’s it worth to you?” she asks. She can play the politician just like her dad. 

“Come on Zo, I keep you filled in about all the staff gossip,” I urge her. 

“Oh alright, who do you want to know about?” Zoey asks. 

“I only get one?” I complain. 

“Yes Sam, and I’m betraying the sisterhood by even giving you one so don’t complain,” Zoey tells me. 

“Fine. Josh and Donna,” I say. Josh is the most likely to tease me about the information he’ll get out of Donna. 

“Guess where Josh and Donna’s baby was conceived?” she says. By the way she’s smiling, I know this is going to be good. 

“Where?” I ask with great curiosity. 

“In my parents barn in New Hampshire,” she tells me. OH MY GOD! They did it in the President’s barn?!?! Oh this is just too good. He’ll never get dirt that good on me. 

“Does you dad know about this?” I ask. I’m guessing not since I haven’t heard of him dishing out any punishment assignments to Josh yet. 

“I don’t know if mom told him or not, but she probably eventually will. She’ll want some secret of his and they’ll make a trade. It might be a while, but he’ll eventually find out,” Zoey tells me. I’m surprised that no one’s said anything to him yet since all the girls know. 

“Why on earth would you want to forget stories like that?. They are great for bargaining,” I tell her. 

“When the stories are about your parents, you REALLY want to forget. I’m never going to be able to watch a Notre Dame football game with them again,” she tells me. Hmm, I’ll have to ask Ainsley what’s up with that. 

The song ends and the President announces that Josh and Donna are leaving on their honeymoon. We all move outside to see them off, throwing rice at them as the make their way to the waiting limousine. Toby, Charlie, CJ, Zoey, and I did our work well when about an hour ago, we snuck out of the party to decorate their limo. Rather than the typical ‘just married’ sign, we went for a ‘FINALLY married’ sign that makes them laugh when they see it. Josh and Donna climb into the limo and wave goodbye to all of us as they leave for their honeymoon. I wrap my arm around Ainsley’s waist and lead her back to the party. 

* * *

**Donna’s POV**

As soon as we’re in the limo with the door securely closed, Josh’s lips are on mine. I respond for a few minutes before pulling back. 

“You know that we are not doing it in the car, right?” I ask him. 

“What? The window is rolled up so the driver can’t see anything,” Josh says. Still not happening. 

“Josh! I don’t want the first time….” I start but her cuts me off. 

“Donna, relax. I was kidding. We are not having our first time as a married couple be done like some teenagers. I’ve taken care of everything. Trust me, your going to love it,” he tells me. Josh seems to be amused by the fact that he fooled me, for which he gets a playful smack on his chest. 

“So tell me about the honeymoon. Where are we staying tonight?” I ask. 

“You’ll see. It’s a surprise. In fact, we’re almost there. Here, put this on,” he says as he hands me a blind fold. I give him a skeptical look, but end up putting it on. 

I hear the door open and feel Josh take my hand to help me out. He leads me along until we stop at the elevator. We take that up several floors although I couldn’t tell you how many. 

“Josh, are you sure you’re going to be able to get that door open without me to help?” I tease. 

“I already got it, Miss Showoff,” he informs me as he leads me into the room. He leaves me standing by myself for a moment and seconds later I hear music fill the room. 

“Is this Yo-Yo Ma?” I ask, recognizing the music. 

“Yep, if it was a birthday or something, I might have actually brought him here, but for what I’ve got planned, I don’t think his company would be appreciated,” he tells me. 

He returns to me and I feel something soft and silky against my nose. I inhale the sweet scent and know it’s a rose. He gives me one kiss with the blindfold on and then removes it so I can see my surroundings. When I open my eyes, I see the most beautiful hotel suite I’ve ever seen. Josh hands me a champagne glass engraved with our initials. “To us,” he says before we drink. 

“I think the countdown just struck zero,” I tell him before pulling him in for a kiss that I don’t plan on breaking any time soon. 


End file.
